We Read an Amazing Story, Chapter 4 with Editors Corrections

'. ·-
CHAPTER FOUR
In which
~e read an amazing story.
The moat amazing saga in American rel igious history has been ~ritten in
t he little City of oscow, Idaho over t he past twenty years. It sounds more like
fiction than truth. As before stuted,the story has been written up b,y many leading
newspapers and magazines in many countries.' ost of the writers however,drew on
their fertime imaginations,and wrote their e ensational stories out of thin air.
Only one of these writers visited oscow to obtain first-hand information.
He was Dr.Marcus Bach ot Iowa State University. He did not discover all there is
to be known about this amazing 1ovement,but what he did discover was true. Pad these
other writers but known it,truth~in this instance,is very much stranger tr~n fie-tion.
Had t .ey visited thi s 1 ttl e City and obtaine ~irst-hand information,instead
of drawing so freely upon their imaginations,they really could ~ve got t,e n a story
which would have made them f amous.
ost of the l eading • eri odicals knew that somet i ng unusual was hap-paning
in t he realn religious, here in . osco\ . ltlw.t it was,they did not know,nor did
they take the trouble to make an intelligent investigation. y;·hile in conference
with llr.tvilliam Chener;y in his office at 250 Park Avenue a few years ago,I SU6gested
to this gentleman,who was then Editor £ Coll~er 1 s Weekly,that he withold a s tory
he was about to publish on The Psychi&na Religion. ~~1 I asked was the privilege,
before the story was publi shed,of seeing the ~uscript. I had an idea from the
n- of man ho had written the story, that it would probably ' be & slap-dash sen-
~iolal yaern in which the founder of the ovement would be pictured as a highway
robber,it not worse. I wa~ correc~ . Collier's Weekly published an illustrated
Page 117
in which t he writer was pictured ns a ''sh.e pherd" and the inference was quite plain
that this .'ovament might be a rnoney-~akina scheme from the proceeds of which the
writer hns nnde a fortune. This,of course,is utterly false. The writer kn s how
to make a fortune if he chooses to,and so1:1e day he may. But if and when he does,
it will not be by playing upon the religious e1no~ions of the American people. Religion
is too sacred a t 1ing for that.
Tlell to get back t o ' ..r.C.henery. \le sa.t there in his office,and I went
round and round with the gentleman,trying to impress upon him the necessity of allow-ing
me to see what was to be published,it he desired to be at all fair,and publish
factual information. But I got just exact y nowhere.'"It would n t be good journalism to allow you to see what will be
published before it is ' ublished11 said r.Chenery to me. To which I replied:-"~·
Chenery,it is the very highest type of journalism to make sure of t he truth of
what you publish." I l eft his of! i ce,and when the article appeared, sa just
how very wrong ~.Chenery had been in ~llowing such an article to be published
without at least giving me an op~ortunity to erase the many errors which appeared
in the article.
However,when any man advocates something new in religion,that
man,if he really has something new,must be prepared to lthatand attacks which
will come from every quarter,buth expected and unexpected. Fortunately the writer
happens to be prett:y well grounded in his philos pey and in his len wled8e of the
Power of God. All attacks have been ~ as ~effective as water on the back of a
proverbial duck. All future att-acks will be equally as ineffective.Truth is it•s own
protector. It needs no other protector. It is for this simple reason that it is
impossible to stop the truths of God,as I am releasing those truths,from winning
thelr wa:y round the world in spite of any and all opposition.
Page 118 •
Perhaps the most vicious of all attacks on t his religion came from
an organization calli.ng itself the "better'' business 11bureau". I discovered,
on investigation,that this organization,while calling itself a rtbureau11
1he.s no
connection whatsoever with our government. It has no judicial powers whatsoever
although it gives the ~~pression that it does possess such powers.
The movement subsists by selling "me~berships 11 to certai."l business
men,and soliciti~ "donations" from others. Usually it sells a "membership" to a
few prominent local business men,e.nd offers them a eeat on it' s 11di'•·ectorate 11 • Then
the names of these prominent businessmen are prominently displayed on the stationer
of the "bureau" and this,of course ,gives t he impression that these pro •. inent bus­inessmen
are actively engaged as officers,receiving a sal~ for their services.
The United States Supre~e Court however,i .• a decision handed down
n Nove:nber of 1J45,pointed out tl"e fact t hat the "directors" are merely nominal,
being paid no salary. The Court pointed out further that there was a distinctly
"commercial" atmosphere permeating the entire structure. The "bureau" had attempted
to secure exemption from social eecurity taxes on the grounds t lat it ia an "edu­cational
and scie title institution". But the United States SUpreme Court said, in
part,1n the unanimous decision it handed down-"fle join the lower courts in de!V'inlf
that contention.' So the "bureau" will have to 1: ay it 1 s social security taxes
just o.e other couunercial organizations pay them.'
It is quite possible that a certain religious organization was behind
the "bureau" attacks upon this reli~ion. Be that as it me.y,hol'lever,one day I received
e.n insulting letter from the l)etroit "better') business "bureau". It was aigned
by o •. e II. I. .cEl.downe7. The letter de!nanded an im::lediate financia.l ;:statement 1e.nd
many otrer particulars which certt.inly "l&re none of the business of any 11better11 ''
business 11bureau". 0£ course, such a request uet witl: instant refusal.
~ aEZe 119 ____ ~-
The writer can speak and write just as }lainly as any 11bureau11
manager,and this man ~'cEldolmey received a lett er 1n keeping \'ith the one he had
so brazenly addressed to me. l'ihat a "better"{?' business 11bUBeau11 manager in
Detroit :ich. was doing trying to interfere with a religion in Idaho,! could not
fathom. However, there was the letter,and I i.lr.agine by now the entire 11bureau11 org&n­ization
would bive it's right arm had ~# that letter not been written. An attack
on any man•s religion happens to constitute subversive,un-ft~erican activities in
these Uni ted States--at least I believe it does--and hen any or ganization,not ves­ted
with Judicial powers,attem}ts t o suppress and destr~y the religious faith of
over one million people,that most certainly constitutes subversive,un-J~erican
activity.
The Psychiana .ovement operates under a very powerful : daho religious
charter. It ls known as a Cor~oration Sole,~nd it's po~era are very wide. OUr pro­perty
i s all tax-exempt and -we do n.:>t pay either slilcial security or property taxes
in the State of Idaho. The writer is pa '. d a salary for his services,a.Di that salary
is so small that he oan,if he so desires,triple it any time he cares to.
Yet here was this "better business" organization,asking for "financial"
statements from the eeventh largest rel~ioua organization ~n J~er ica. I presume it
will be a1king the Rooan Catholic Ch roh,or t he Presbyterian Church tor financial
stat~ents one of these days. I should like to have a copy "of the reply it reaeives
£rom Ro;:e it it ever does e.sk it for e. statement of finances.
Anyway,! flat~ refused to submit any statellient of any sort to this
organization,which,b,y t he way, I had never hea o{ before. J~d tben the true, nature
of .cEldowney began to sh w 1 tself. He drew u "bulletins" which were sent to every
magazine and newspaper which car ried our copy (over 800 of t hem) and he asked that
no further advert•sing of The Psychiana Religion be carried until this religion' Page 120
Psyohiana had submitted a fi..'lallc~al statement to t he "better'') business "bureau'
Let it be reitember ed here that thi s "bureau" organization is not
connected in anT way,either direct1J or indirectly wi th the U.S.Gover0$ent. It has
no Juducial powers whatsoever. It ~s a private corporation whose headquarters are
in New York City,and it has branches throughout ~he United States. (I should like to
seea financial statement of the 11bureau,. Yet here it was,a perfect example of the
attempted suppression of reli gi on if I have ever seen one, asking nE.wspapers and
magazines thro ghout the nation not t o acce_t the religious advertising of one of
.America's major systems of rel igion. It is unbel..evable,yet t hat is what happened •' 'ihen 1 t ' s attempts t o stop our ad7ertising f ailed, the "bureau" began
to file ohe.rgeB ~ainst thi~ relJ.6ion with the ·Post )f'fice De .rtment. It bad no
s ucoess there either. Then the Federal Trade Commission,and then the ~ecurities'
Exchange Commiasion,and I dont know how m&ny more government agencies were the
recipients of "complaints" against us,merely because we were offering something new
in religion.
I mention this at t ack because if my religion can be so ruthlessly
attacked tod~,yours could be tomorrow • • oreovel ,it makes one a~spicious ot the real
motiYea of 8n7 private Cvrporation which so brazenly and penly attacks anyone's ·
~ligion,no matter how difterent his religion ~ be.
In t he United States, e have ve.ry comretent offici als, both
State end Federal,snd law viol ators e s eedi ly COU!Jht up with. The }Jl"ecedent of
allowing any private ovrp Iation,no ~tter w~~t it calls i t self1to interfere with,
and try to sul press UJ.Y man's religion is a f:tf.e~tv precedent T.hioh,if not el iminated
s peedi~,could result in the complete l oss of religious free om here in America.
We suffered over one milli on casualties in the cruel es just ended. Those boys
suffered and died to protect,w~ a1e told,fre~p~ £ r ligion,among other freedoms.
P~e 121~---'
Yet here in this same freedom-loving America,there is an organization
which,i f a religion will not f ile a financial statement with it,will try to sup­press
and destroy that rel lg~on. The precedent is too dangerous to be allowed to
comtinue. ,There is too much danger in allowing aey private corporation t.J have any­thing
whatsoever to say or do about aey man's religion. The Ku Kll.lX Klan ie an
example of that. The German-Amer lean Bund is another example.
~
The man does not live who cen offer one word of cri ticism against
Fat her Flan~"-n of Boy-stown Nebrask"l.. Yet t his aa.me "bureaurr ru.th"e11sly attacked
Fathet- Fle.na.ge.o,wh.:>se l!OOd deeds are know around t.he \'orld. Firat Father Flanagan,
then The Psychiana Religion---will your religion be next?
I had to smile at iiJ/J!(/;#(/.IJ an English weekly ot very large circulation which,
some years ago,ran two full pages of illustrated edit orial matter on the founder of
The Psychiana Religion. He had written me for a few facts upon which to base the
article,and I had sent him as many pertinent facts as I thought he would need.
When the article was ublished however,it ap~eared w~th a huge full-eight
column illustrated banner which depicted the writer running from a bank with a
gun in one hand and about half a mill ~on dollars in the other hand. The caption
read :-11FOR.iER BANK RJBBER ST.A.RTS NEW F..ELIGION'
I may have robbed a bank in t he dim misty recesses of ~ past,but if I
did it must have eeen while I was man~esting as someone else--which Theosophists
believe possible. Certainly there was nothing in the information I bad sent. to Lon­don
which even hinted that I am a reformed bank-robber. So much f or the journal­istic
mmnds of some publishers.
Pbge 122
The
i/:tdl articles which hav~ appeared in TD!E were not too be.d, but they
too with t he arti cles which have appeared in NEWSWEEK, PIC,THE PATHFINDER,JltERI CAN
MERCUDY,MAGAZINE DIGEST 8nd other periodi cals f Rr too ntunero JS to mention,all held
the i nnuendo t hat t he writer is a very clover ! romoter ,a maate~ of upper -case,and
an advertising genius wit hout a peer. One magazine,on the~ "yellow journal" order
stated t hat the founder of The fsychis.ne. Rel ig ton ls 11Tbe f'or ld ' s Greatest 1dvertisi ng
Genius and Racket eer.' dl, considerin~ the t ype of magazine wl: ich carried t he
story headed as e.bove,I consider thnt quite a compliment.
Of c~urse ,when it became evident that The Psychiana Religion was
here to stay,as millions upon millions were receivinJ our literature and hundreds of
t housands were Joining our organization,religious periodicals unleashed a barrage
of criticism which was interesting, to say the least. The writer bas been accused
of belng everything f rcm "Anti-Ct.rist11 to "An incarnation of Jesus". Neither ,of"
'
co~ee is true. The writer is merely a man who has an infinite faith the Almighty
God and who believes t hat the Power f /Jmighty God can,it the world will allow 11m
to,bring sanity and peace into a world which,unless it changes very rapidly,will
destroy civilization in the next t hree years r less. If t he human race does not
completely destroy itself,unless the Power of God comes t o the rescue,it will maim
i t self beyond al l recognition. On the blast ed ruinp .f this civili zation which
could have known t he Power of God had it oh se t o,The Allaighty wil l build a much
grander civi l i zat lon which will be based u1 'On ctual knowledge of' t he Power of
the Spirit of God.
The Author bel ~ves he kniJWS what l e is tnlkitli about. He knows
whereof he speaks. He has,as hi s advertisements' sta e, 11TALKED WITH G D" and when
man talks with God and God t alks with I:11ln,if man listen8,he uauall.T can find the
wq out of every desperate situation. The tro ble with man today is the he wUl not
list en to what The Almighty has to reveal. If a 1 rophet of God a pears on the
~e 123 _____ ~~~~--------------~
horizon and attempts to inetlll new life into dead theological bonos,immedtate~
a cr7 is aroused against th~t man. 'Usual ly by the churches who do not desire to be
dist urbe in their theological lethe.rg7. They like it. They want to keep it. They
are too lazy to shake it o!f.
All ri~ht then--let them have it. I dont want it. Tl'.e day is
not far off when the c urbhes will beg for the Power of G~d to come to them. 7hat
day may be t oo late.
Among the m st vicious of all religious magazines which attacked The
Psychiana Religion was the f111tHT..'!Iffl.!f!H##Iit'liJ#fitti.oi.&~' otti#J./'(Jf#fitf.l#fit#'l'ff.;J.I'M/.4'¢1t
1/il##lfiUii.f#lottfiil.r.~-.tf.pt/.fl '.'r:Ile"f/1 ld#fln$.t ,;i.t ita!i !#!#rr#i~' II SUnday School Times. This
magazine is,I believe,the l argest c~culating and most outstanding of all P.Dotestant
interdenominational magazine. After tearing my t eachings limb from limb,an article
under the date-line of December 25th. 1937 ,says thie,in part:-
'fhus 1 t is evident that r sychlana is a complete rejection
of God,Chriet,and the 31ble.~t it ls not a new rejection,
not a new di scovery, or revelation of any sort.To be sure,
it makes characteristic~ll7 ~odest claims to be new .••••••
yet it CJntains nothing whatsoever th~t i s new but is mere~
another of the old,old echoes o£ the ancient lie with whicl
Satan deceived Eve in the Garden of Eden •.••.•• the same
false pbllosophy has been ·popul~ throush the &.ges and :finds
express ion tn Jr".n.Y false clll te sucl1 as Chri5ticn ·Science,
New Thought,Unity,e.nd the like. All these, ith Psychiana,
deny the realit7 and the 1eath-wngea of s.tn, the unique deity
of Jesua,all mens need of a Savior,the substitutionar.y
blood a t '>nement made by Christ in Pis death on the eros a,
His bodilJ resurrection,and His coming again to judge and
reign over the world •••••••••• '
The editor ol the Times continues in this strain. I r~Ave given J1fT reader
enough for him or her t o gresp the ineinuetiona in the srticle. I cannot help but
n te in the original art-icle, t he editor forgot to ca}-italize the words v1hen r e.ter­ring
to Jesua. The capitals in the above quote parts of the art cle were pl.e.e~
there by Il'.e.
Page 1 23
It is a pity that the magazines and the leaders of our major
religions are so dogmatic that they infer that anyone ho disagrees with them is
automatically wrong. Although totally 'U.JUlble to prove their honestly held "beliefs'
they forget that t hey are only 11beliefs11 • They rnay be true or false beliefs. The
editor of t he Sunday School Times,for lnst&nce, cennot prove in any court of law,
that any of his theses concernin,~ God,Chrlst,or the Bible are true. J.ll they do
is prove that they "believe" t hem to be true,and 1ometimes I wonder if they can
do that.
So long as this "closed-door", bigoted atti tl.\de is persisted in
I see no possible chAnce of hatever ne revelations which may come direct from·God
•
being accepted by the Christian church,the very organization which should welcome
such men as me with open arms. S?me man like me might possib~ have a revelation
come•
which lti:IJ* direct from The Almighty-you never can t ell. The editor ot the S.S.Times
himself does not have all the answers .a lthough he may think he has •
If that is the case,and it very easily could be,then do you not see
how the C 1ristian church itself mi ght very easily be the organization which, because
o£ it's unwillingness to believe tlat God still has a few revelations left for this
Christianity will never save it so long as it adopts the vaiD.,toollsh
attitude that it possesses all the truths of God,end denies the possibility ot The
Almighty to inspire ~ man today with the necessary illumination the world needs
to save it from it•s impending doom. In spite of anything the traditions of the
religion advocated by the s.s. Tines 11believes", this world is heading straight for
a disaater which lllA7 be eo stupendous that it will almost t otally destroy civiliza­tion,
and there is nothing the e itor of the S.S.Tim s or the Christian religion
can advocate which can ard otr that calruuity. So why brand eveyone who teaches
another doctrine,a. faker,e. fraud,or an iupostor?
___________ Page 124 ________ ~---------------------
of the S.S.Time3 to r~~em~er the advice given by G~-~liel--" If this work be of
God ,ye cannot atop 1 t-if 1. t be of ntt'.n, it w '.11 coma to na\l.iht. 11
•
The editor of the Times makes the blanket statement that Psy-chia.na
is 9 complete reJection of God,Christ,and the Bible. t dont believe this good gen-tlema.
n meant that when he wrvte it. The entire Psychiana .ovement is t .unded upon
the Power of The Spirit of God. In twenty years l t has ta~ht notbi~~ but the rower
of the Creator-. ft is the Powel" of God in the l.it'e of the f ounder of the
.ovement which enables h to demonstrate the actual and liter~~ Power which can
come only from the Father. How then can the editor of the S.S.Times say that I
reJect complete~ God~ Father?
•
The reader will know before he finishes this book,if indeed he '
does not know it already, t hst,far from rejecting Christ,! love that '!.t!l!! as few
have ever l oTed Him. { ! even capl ' alize the pr~positions when l':riting about Him,and
the S.S .Til'!les does not). But I love Him ae a lt8n,oot as a God. I have no time to
love Jesus es a God because all of my time is fully occupied w1th,iaieed rq whole
life is hidden in God-the Spirit of God,end that precludes my #N.ff#J/tt/1 worshii-ping
Jesus as ·God.
As a God,Jesus would be superfluous to me.· I have one God,and
that God ie autf ic1ent ~ That God exiete long before time was. Long bet re Jesua was.
Long before Bibles · '. ere kn:nm. Lot15 t~tore the hwr.an race .ever cau to t.h• earth.
Like Jeeus,I have found that Jt is the Spirit of God,tbat dwel­beth
within me,that doeth the works. Jesus was the great~st spiritual Prophet this
world will ever know. But the entire mission of Jesus was not to blow His pwn horn,
but to reveal to humanity--Hi~Fathe~ 1od.The total and complete failure of t he
Page 125 _____________ ~--------~---------
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Chri sti s.n church to make any iru4.r eseion on thia worl d,or stop f or one i nstunt the
head1.ong plunee to utter destruction, which lies just e.hea t , co.n be attributed to
it 1s w .shippinB J esus cS a God• mis~i~ complete~ and entirelr t ho ~cssage Jesus
came t"=> thi s eBl'th to reveal. 'lhat rcess~G is t he pre~ent existence of the Spirit
of God on the e~rth, am in each 0'1.e of w:s.
I point the editor of the S.S.Times to 1 Cor.5;16 There he will find
this statement if he will but look:- "Know ye not tr..at ye are the temple of God,
and t hat the Spirit ot: God dwelleth 1n 7)U?' Cau anythi~ be plainer ths.n that?
Did Jesus come to t hi s earth t o preach an, other message than that? I s there any
other message which can eave t his world t oday-exce t that?
r ~~ n,t interested in disc~s~ ing ni th t he edi tor of the S.S.Times his
reference t o Eve i n t he Garden of Eden,nor u:n I i nt erofitcd in h13 Satanic roa jesty
and his converaation with a tE.U:ing e ns..l(c. Fur too ser l o.!f; probleu.s confront t his
worl d for me to ·be interested in such t waddl e as that. If the editor of the Times
chooses t v believe t hc.t, l et h1m have it. I dont \'"E.:lt i t '
I ahould like to tell t he editor of the S.S. imes,just 1n case he does
not know,Just where t hat et~ry originated. It did~ originate in the C ri~t1an
Bible,with all due resr ect t o t he rever ence with which t he g entle~an holds the
Chtistian Bible. tillion~ of people knew the tal~ing anake stort thousands of
yeat's before Chrlstian-t1 was ever hear<! of . Aa a mat t er of f act,the Hindoo had
t he complete atoey of Adam e.nd Eve in t he ,Garden of Men, and i t was ;tritten in the
Hindoo Bible,more tlwl fifteen hundred years 'before th:l!i 8htAattpfwt.ll*ever beard of.
That ls a hard one for even the S.S.Times t o explain e:wey. Hero is t he story as
told to ll1ndoos re-garding t heir 11God" Jeaeue Chrishnc.''' .n.d other Hi ndoo ~ods)'
t ccordlng to t his anci ent r el igbn in l7hi cn :nilliono of peopl e bel ieved
-----------------~------~---------------~~L-1 ~~ ----------------------~~------
.fifteen hundred years bat' r~ the ti.ua of the Ct..ristian era, the .first created
couple on this earth were (n.->te carefu ly these names) Adi.mo and !!eva. Their virgin-born
crucfied God was {notG earefu ly agein) Jeseus Chriahna. There was a flood
which dest-royed r;.ll hw..an life from off tho face or the earth-excepting one_ men.
I
His na.'T!e was (note carefully again pl~ase) ?-Toe. Now NOia had thl:·ee oons,Sherma. Hama,
and Jiapheta. The Noah~of Cbriptianity had thr~e sons whose names were Shero,Iiam,
and J~tp..lJ.eth.
now this is the story ·f the Garden of Eden,in p!U"t,which the editor
of the S.S.Tiu:t?s uses in his attempt to tell his readers that Psychie.oo is a 11compl ete
rejection of God,Christ,and the Bible." I hcve ~~t one question to ask the gentleman
at this point--if the story of Adam and Eve, the s~_oent, the i'l:l.~.l or man etc._is a
Could it be poasibl~ that ent.ire story waa stolen fror~ t 11e Bind.:>o b~r the Christian?'! shell euga.ge in no f'..rgument over religion with the ed ttor of the
S.S.Times or anyone else,and it. is interesting to note that dv.rinz all the attacks
made on my by a.lro >st every maJor religious periodical in eJ~:istence~I have nev~ re­plied
totor ~swarad one of' them '
.Argl.l!!Wnto over rel~ion get just exactly n~wbere,and 1 have neither
the time nor the inclinatioa ·t.o indulge in them. I must be about II\Y Fath,er 's business,
any MY Fet~er's business happens to be the salvation of the hurr~n race,if the human
race will allow itself to be saved. It is quite evident ths.t the Christian chmch
does not know how the race can be sa~ed. I do know. Jt can be totally and completely
saved from ilP.manant disaster by the Power of God,and in n~ other way. Regardless of
what I think abou~ the talkil:l6 snake in;ti the Gar<ten of Eden or any of the rest of
the myths which clutter up wth the Chrtst1an and all other Bibles,the SUnday School
Times might flnd something mure profitable to do that conaemn a man whose whole life
Page 126
is dedicated to the sacred. task of endeav..>x:lng to save thls civilization from itsel f
by and thro gh the Power of The Spirit ot God.
•
i/;J' metnods are my oJtn. y inspiration ia m7 elm.. Ily fellowship w '' th God
is my own. 1'he Power I receive from my God is my own. I ask uo one ho" I shall try
to reveW. the Power ot God to this world. I follow the Lieht as I see the :.ieht,and
it the day oomes when I hesitate to do that,I shall a~k God to take awey trcm me
the Yision He has given me,and give it to someo~e else mnr~ wcrthy then J '
tlone has ever heard me say that I,of myeel.f ,em aqythiP-t. r know nJYself
too well to r. ~e any such foolish statement. If it were not tor the r ower of the Spirit
of God -in roy .lite,do you think ! e) uld wri.te this book? Do y?u t !:d.nk for o::J.~ mooent
1 could utand up under the attacks of the "better'' ') busineaa 11hureau11• and endure
the constant 111nvestige.tions11 which t hat outfit hc:'. e ct used rue to ea:lure-~o you think
such articles as constantly apr-·ear in such peri<Xiicals llf.'lf. as tho SUnday School
Times do not cause the aging he~:o.rt of m ne to bleed-do you think for one moment.
I could etand under the barrage of persecution the Christian church has heap~d upon
t
my head if it were not tor the Power of the SpJrlt of God in me?
I have been accu~ed or almost everything.' !i<me ha~ ever
found so much as a traffic v ol ation aga.1nst thia '. ovement though) I have neYor
been e.co '. sed of being a tool. Unleaa the vislon I have is clear ,~nd unleoe the npir it
of God 1n me 1a a Living Reality, I would clC'>se up the Paychiam buildings ina ide of
fifteen minutee ,for I do not like agony and persecution any more thau Jeaus , iked
it ' .And I believe r know just how His beautiful hea.rt.-s+.rin:!e throbbeQ .r.nd pulsed
with inner pain and t ent when the realisioniste <.1f His day oreid out;- nncl cus£,
unto us Barabbas-crucif;y ihts man--yes--kill J!tixn,or better st lll,cive Ei."ll to l;;.s--we' l l
do the jobn.
Once l!loro : repeat c.. atatei".ent mrde ~eviously in this book. ~t is
my honest conviction the.t it jesus Wel'e t o return to tho ee.rth t o'Jay 1atxi preach the
idcnt~c~ truths e ~reached nineteen hu~Jred yea1·2 ago , ~he Chri stian church would be
the one or~unizt t!on which uould cry--"Cruoify Hl!:l-Crucifir J!im". I reall7 ·believe
that. ·
If Jesus would return tomorrow ,about everyone would hear Him,
and make Him welcome except the church which bears His rlfl.i/H.;¥ sacred ame. I t would
not give him r:>o:n. There was no r oo;.i in the 1nn1 \7hen He • as born,There ia no room
1n t he theol·:>gical inn for Him to<lay. rt.an or God-what doea it fi1a.tter ? The message
He came to brir~ can liberate the world now as it could have l1ber~ted it nineteen
hu.."ldred yenrs ago. But,as wc.s t he case nineteen hunc' red years ago, the religionists
woald not hear him. They had ideas of t 1eir own. The editor of t he S.S.Times,and t he
entire Christian world have ideas of t hel r wn. Those ideas have ~-red t he doors
pU>.ced
against the Spi rit o£ '100.. The blrune may be on their heads.
The Presgyteria' Bonner was a bout the onlf religiouo eriodicnl
which gave me aQT crodit f or being in earneet,and for having a religious v!e1on which
I am tcying to bring to hu::\enlty. That .as because the author of the ar ticle, r:hich
J:ePtOl'
was published 1n the Eer..ner happened t9 be- the ffl#iJ"II o£ the First Presbyterian Church
1n .t.oscow--the nev.(U~ .Drury~ who B ~ id,in p(!.rt,in 1!332 in The B&nner,'''"Here is a
new reli~ion in it•s inf~ncT • • e cennot ignore it,whether we lik~ it or uot.tbia
manu ••• greatly hete<l e.n1 creatly lo7ed ••••• is re~ch~ ndlJ.bns the church never
will rs~ch.''
L~ng ago I rea~ized t he futili t,y of appealing to members of any
rel ~~ion,so did not aim my advertisi ng et t hem,but to t he man on ~he street. WP_at
the leaders of our religious orgenizat ions,has both shocke ~~d hurt me. The message
I am bringing to the world should be broU&ht thro • h the church. The Christian
Pue l2a
•
church is the organization that Should be bringing this message of
the Power of the $pir1t of God to th~ world,instead of having to '
pioneer it in the face of obstacles which,most of the time' seem insur-mountable.
With their buildings and oragnizations,The Spirit of God
could bring to this earth such a manifestation of It's Power that
those who even now are planning an atomic war in the near future, would
be forced to kide from the public. The Spirit of God would shame them
into either suioide,like Judas,or into utter oblivion. What sort of
dynamite it will take to awaken the church I do not know. I am afraid I
do not possess such dynamite. So the truths of God will have to be
brought to the earth by an unknown individual who,though hampered and
harassed by religionists at every turn of the raod,still can look into '
the face of God,and say,with a pro1het of old:- I know 1n Whom I have
bel1eved,and am persuaded that He will keep that which I have commit~
ted unto Him.'
I believe I'll recount a rather amusing experience which
happen within the past year. It concerns the First Presbyterian Church
of Moscow,and as I have already mentioned that church,the following
incident may be of interest to the reader. It will show What Jesus
would have t p put up with if He came back to earth and tried to do
today,what He tried and failed to do nearly two thousand years ago.
Jesus came to this earth to reveal the Power of the Spirit
of God. Every minister and priest will admit that. He failed,becauae
the organized church wotlld have none of it. It preferred to build a
political structllre on Jesus the Me ssanger, instead of the Spirit of
God, Who is ever with us. That same thing is ha.ppening today with the
message I am bringing. You see--after Jesus was crucified,the church
Page 129
knew He was out of the way. It oould,and did,set up any structure it
cose to set up • . But had the church believed Jesus,and accepted the
Message ins~ead of deifying the Messenger,that would have meant· that
the good church members of that day would have had to give up many or
all of their evil practices . This they did not choose to do. This,they
still do not choose to de. However,it is utterly preposterous to try
and throttle the Spirit of God. That Spirit,and the Truth it is,may
have to sneak in,in the garb of a burglar,but eventt\ally it will leaven
the whole world. It will appeal to the "common man",not the holier-than­thou
type which infests the houses of God today.
This incident is true in every detail. It shows the
bigotry and the utter foolishness of the Christian church everywhere,
but especially here in Moscow. ~UjHf# !t so happens that
Mrs . Robinson,my son Alfred and daughter Florence are all members of
the First Presbyterian church of Moscow. They have been for years.
A few years ago,Clifford Drur,y,while ~e was pastor here '
started to build a new church. He had quite a time, but he 'did get
the basement built. He did not seem to be able to get a~ further
tl1an the basement though. So Drury was moved to the Presbyterian Seminary
at San Anselmo,Calif. and Dr . O.L. Walter took his place here. He at
once took up the construction program where Clifford Drury had left off,
and he succeeded in finishing the church.· It is a fine church,and one
of which Moscow Presbyterians should be proud.
Anyway,~nen it came round to soliciting donations for the new
building,! was included and made quite n substa~tial contribution. In
the meantime,after the church was oompleted,Dr.Walter was made District
Superintendent for the Pacific Northwest. He was too good a financial
man to leave in "oscow. No~ his job is to supervise other building
programs, a~ well as supervise the Presbyterian church in the north ' \\"est.
Dr. Walter is quite a boy. He is one of those pe.stors who is not
ashamed to greet an "athaist" like myself on the street. I warned him
several times that he would probably lose his job if he got too friendly
with me,but,laughingly he said to me one Iii d~ when I had told him
that:* "Frank--there is no religion that is going to dictate my private
life. I do not agree with some of the things you w.rite,but I dm agree with
ninety percent of it. Anyway,! consider you a friend and I'll come to your
home any time I want to,regardless of what the elders think.'
About a year ago,Dr.Walters dropped in to see me one day
at noon. It's strange how some ministers get the habit of dropping round
just at mP.',l time. But tlley do. ve had quite a happy visit together. Dr.
Walter had to leave for his present headquarters in Portland Ore. very
shortly, so our visit was not at long as I should hFJ.ve. liked it to have
been.
W.hile he was mn my home,he suggested that maybe I'd like to donate
a stained-glass windo\'1 to the new church in Moscow. Re told me that such
windoes woul d coAt $1000 and only one remained to be donated. The glass-work
was to be done by a famo'~ Boston stained-glass man,and the donor had the
privilege of choosing the subject which was to be depiceed on the glass.
I have little money of my own,so I made him a check on the
Psychiana corporation for ~1000 which seemed to make otis very happy. He
had demonstrated his salesmanship once more. rhen he $$tjf$ asked me what
Bible character I wanted to be depicted on the window,! thought for a few
moments and then said:- "Iet 's put Gamaliel there--and let's use his
Page 131
words 'If this work be of God you cannot stop i t ,but if it be of man
i t will come to naught'
Ilr. Walter thought that subject would be fine and said so '
Be promised to turn the check over to th~ local Church, which he did ,saying
that he would personally contact me and shw m~ the tentative design for
the window,the subject of course being Gamaliel, as we had agreed '
Well several months went by and I did not hear,either from
Dr.Wal ter or anyone else about the design for the window . Knowing that
Scotchmen will hang onto a dollar till the last dog is hung,I decided t o
institute some inquiries about the progress being made with my Gamaliel
window.
The present pastor is Dr.John Furnas,a fine chap, and a fellow­member
of Rot ary Intcrnatinnal. We meet here in Moscow every Monday
evening at 6.15. On the evening in question,! asked John Furnas what
progress,if any , \vas being made with the Gamaliel windov1, Then, for the
first time,I began to suspect that something was wrong . John Furnas
dropped the hint that some of the elders did not like the Gamaliel
window. v.ey--I do not know. Gamaliel is a Bibl e character,o.nd L thm. .\ ght
appropriate
the Gamaliel incident might be very a"ffiitdfflffl on the V'indow of' the
l ocal Presbyterian church. I discovered however,that I was very much
mistaken. "Youu see Frank" ,said Dr.Furnas to me while discussing the
matter later,"That could work both ways--that statement of Gamaliel'
could be taken to mean the Presbyte;ian religion as well as t he Psychiana
relieion , and some of the elders t hink that is not so hot.'
A few days later I r eceived c letter from one of the
' elders--a Dean at the University of Idaho. The letter stated that the
committee appreciated the check for tlOOO , but wondered' i : I would not
like to change the subject matter. "How about the parable of the Sow~r"
Page 132'
I informed the gentleman that the ~reement was that the
st ory of Gamaliel go on the s tained-glads w.indow,and that it would have to
be that,or nmthing.
A few months dragged by, and I again corresponded with the
Dean,giving him an ultimat1~--either put in the window with the story
of Gamaliel,or refund the $1000 check. The c~eck came back just a few
days ago. There were five signatures on the check,and when I called this fact
t o the attention of Dr.Furnas at the Rotary Chub,jokingly remarking about
Scotchmen not t r usting themselves,he replied:- "The funny t hing about that
is that only one of t hose ~ ignatures is good." What t l,e other four were
doing there I did not care to inquire.
This story in itself means nothing,and I may have been
wasting the readers time in teD.ing it. Bt1t t here is a moral to it however.
This church di d not bak at a ll about taking my money for a new church,but
when a Bible character who admitted that someone else b e~ides Christians
may have some truth t oo,they would not allow such a character to be depicted
on a stained-slass window in their church. That sort of narrowness is the
t hink mich 1s keeping knowledge of' the Spirit of God from t he church members,
and t hrough them,from the world.
Church members should eit her be honest enough to admit t hat
they know nothing whatsoever about the Power of God,or they should get out
of the church. A l ocal minister said to me a fe\v years ago:- "fuctor
Robinson,what is this Power of God you continually talk ~nt:i. write about?'
I looked at the man in amazement "You are a minister of the gospel and
do not lmow mat the Power of God is?" I shot at him '"No wonder your
church is dead--no wonder at a ll.'
Page 133
Before I return to where I started this chapter, I'll recall
for your enjoyment an incident which is based upon an article which
appeared very prominently in The Lutheran Companion,the offmcial
organ of the Lutheran Church in America. It may be found in the issue of
Feb. 17th . 1938 . The author of the article is a Lutheran minister who
used to live in Moscow. Formerly he was an automobile mechanic '
One evenine,my phone rang. Upon answering it I heard the voice of
one who introduced himself as the Rev. Oliver ,pastor of the local Lutheran
church . Upon inquring what I could do for him,he asked me if I would
loan him S50. I asked him for what purpose and he told me his cousin,or
nephew wanted to start a bus line in Moscow,and did 1not have the necessary
$50,and he thought perhaps I would loan it to him.'"Yihy dont you loan it to him?" I asked the Lutheran minister,who
replied:- "Well I dont have it to spare at this time '" I then informed
him that I did not believe a bus line lM)Uld be successful in rt1oscow, nor did
I believe anyone should start such a line whose financial capacity was
so low that he had to borrow the $50 necessary for a license '
The pastor ev!dently was rather surprised that I did not at once
send him $50 by special messenger. ~nat little money I get does not come
that easy though. I offered I!}Y regrets and hung up the phone,believing
the matter to be settled. However,! ms mistaken. In about an hour the
phone rang again. It was the same Lutheran pastor. This time he informed
me that he had a set of valuable books which he would leave with me
as secutity for the loan if I would make it . He was very anxious that
his nephew get the $50 and wouldn't I please hold these valuable books
as security-.' they had been left him by his mother, z:nany years ago '
• Page 134
Finally I weakened,and told him to send the books to the
house and pick up the C50 . I did not '\·.rant tr4e books a.s e ecu:ri ty, but
took them anyhow,thir~ine perhaps that an old set of books would perhaps
be interesting reading . In less than half an hour a taxi draKe up to my
home and the driver asked if I had $50 for the Rev . Oliver. I told him
I had,and asked hiro if he had some books . Be said yes,and breught the
books,all in nice new packages into my home,whereupon I gave him a
check made out to the Rev. Oliver for $50.
After the taxj_ -driver h2d departed, I looked at the books
which bore the l abel of P .F.Collier and Sons . There were five cartons
of them. upon openin~ them I discovered they were a set of ten fiction works
some bl Victor Hugo and ~orne by other popular authors . This was not an
old set of books,as the date on the books is 1936. The Reverend's mother
may have given this set to him, but by peculiar circumst ance ,P.F.Collier
a~d Sons were c onductine a hea~J advertising campaign on these books
at that time . They sold for ~:25 . 00 u set. Then I figured I had been
taken for a short ride . How~ver , one get 'H used to that '
The next day I vms speaking with a l ocal banker about
the experience,when the banker turned to me and said:- "Did that son-of-a­gun
sell you that set of books for $50,he sold me a set for $25.00.'
I hastened t o e:~ lain thot Rev.Oliver htld not sold me the books at a ll--I
had loaned him $50 on them.
You may iMagine my surprise when some time l nter u
Swedish la"yer mailP.d me a copy of The Lutheran Companion, and there '
ve.ry prominent in the issue was ax urticle by my bool ' -loving friend '
on Psychiana. I quote some of the st~temonts from that ~rticle:-
Page 135' ••••• but like all born things,this fad t oo i s beginning t o die .It will soon
be ready for obsequies a~d the well-knovm l egerdemain \vill be just another
exp ~rience.While,to some extent it has been a slap in the face t o the
Church, it has awakened us sonewh~t to our situation and the good it has
done must not bl9 entirely discredited . No man l'l.'ould want to talce his
la~t l 1ne horizo~tnl look at the stars and then pillow his#### eternal
soul on a dtug-store religion. To Christian s,there is only one cure-all,
one panacea for the ille of the world and that is Christ • • ••• I r·onder
what the Rev.Peter Ca r lson would say and do about this Psychiana business
which time ~.nd t1.de have ~.shed u:p? ~o doubt he vould rise up and
quarantine this pseudo Christian Science xash.'
I have no answer for the Rev .Roger P .Oliver. I have a suggestion
which I should like t o make . If the one panacea for all the worlds ills
is Jesus,then I should like to suggest to the Rev.Olivcr that he at once
begin to administer t he panacea instead of decrying someone who ~ trying
to s oothe those ills. I am afraid however,Rev.Oliver has the ~Tong formula.
Jesus Christ died two thousands years ago,and has never been heard from
since ���•• or has He? It will take more than a religious tradition t o cure
the ills of this wor ld. It \Ull take real divine Po\rer.The tradition ·of
Jesus can cure nothing. The Power Jesus came to proclaim can cure the
ills of this ~·:orld however,and here is where the Christian church has
missed the boat . It lives it 's entire life talicing about Jesus ,Peter,Paul,
Moses,Abraham,and a few other outstanding Bible characters. These are all
good,but none of then can heal the ills that are pl aguing the human
r ace today.
Unless s omeone steps into the picture with the a ctual Power
of God,and that very socn,it will be t oo l ate to save this civilization
from complete destruction. ~1ly today Senator Pepper of Florida , who has
just returned frorna trip to Soviet Russia says that relations between
that nation and the United States have deteriorated to such on extent
that \'Je are now in an atomic bo~b race \'lhich v:ill result in an utorric
war inside of three years . This statement was made over the N.B.C. on
August the thirteenth 1946. Page 136
So I suggest fh1~,¥ff! t o the e<li tor .of the Sunday School Times,
and Rev.Oliver,and ~~e Denn who would not allow the stor~y of Gamaliel
to be inscribed in P plete-glass win.d ow in tho First Presbyterian church
in Moscov.:,that if they know anything at a ll about the Power o:t' God,for
God's sak e ,~nd for the sru(e of a dying,perishing civilization,let them
sho ·{ us the way to Go:l--or else stop trying to interfere with one'.ho is at least tryine to :point the way to God.
I can take ever·y-thing this Christian world can t.b.' r ow a.t me,
and smile. I can take ever~,rthi.nB any r acketeerL'I'lg "businese" organization
can throw at me, and still smile. But it sF!erls to me thnt instead of our
churches 'IJastir.tg valuable time and space tolling their members what
a terrible f'ello~·: I am , they wculd tell the world how 1 t can be made
straight throt..gh the Spirit of God, they oould be far more \''orthy of
their calling.
Jesus was a Jew.A syrian Jew. A peasant. Yet He knew
something of the Power of God.And es a result of what He knew,that Syrian,
peasant Jew made religious history. Ha v.a:-ote His name in letters of
gold on history's scroll. He f ailed in His misei on. Failed miser.:.bly.
The re2son He failed v-as because they on \.•hom He depended Lll left Him
and flP-d. As e result, the 'l,Ol'ld fAces cu"l'lpl~te annihilation. If Senator
Pepper is correctancl if ~ n atomic wa:r· co:t1e~ t o this earth inside of
the next three years,there will be little left of the hmnan race.
So I once more suggest to the Christian church thf\t it find the Power
of The Spirit of God,::ind in and through that Power,lead this God-forsaken
V'lorld back to the gl'C'Iry it had •vith God,before religionists,who doubted
the abil ity of God to mruce good His promiscs,brought this world to
the condition in ~~ich it is today. I personally should be ashamed
to travel under the garb of religion,coul4 I not offer some const=uc
Page 137
-tive aotion,designed to alleviate the sufferings this earth now
endures,and the much ~urse ~~ferings which lie hard ahead.
I believe it to be in order here to ~ention just one more
incident,not that I wish to assail any religion. I wish to help them.
I am thinking that ~~f.$~$.pperhapn,as a result of this book,there . ~dll
come to the Chr~stian church such a baptism of spiritual P0wer that
the catastrophe 11Jhich lies just ahead may be averted. I~ is up to
the Christian church itself. God will provide the one who knows they
way when the Christian ab:urch demonstrates 1 t wants to know they way.
In the absenoe of such a desire,there is nothing even God Almighty
can do.
A :few .:years ago a rather ·promincnt Methodist Bishop wished
to reeet me. He passed on the word through Dr .C. ~ . Tenney,a Methodist
reinister who was in my employ as assiEtant. I shall have more to say
about Dr. Tenney later in this book. It .sO happened that the f,~ethodists
were holding a conven.tion,or whatever it is they call their get-togethers,
I
at the Stevens Hotel in Chicago. I had met the Bishop in question some
few years before and knew him by sight.
I happened to be staying at The Stevens Hotel at the time'
the convention was in session,and after lunch one afternoon,! spotted
the Bishop walking across the lobby. Accosting him I introduced r~yself '
and informed him of Dr.Tenney's transmission of his message that he
would like to meet me. The good Bishop was vGry urcomfortable,I could
see that . ·
"Where can we get together Bishop L •••••• " I asked hi:r.'"Oh--cannot I meet you somewhere on a. train,where no one will
see us?" he replied. Page 138
Rather taken a bacJr by tnis steter.ent I satd to the good Bishop:- "On a
train Bi~hop---what is the matter --why cannot we sit dovm. here and talk '
or go up to your roor, o:r" mine~ '',.011 n o--that ,,rould never do- '':you see --you are pretty well
kno,~m here , c:.nd if anyone in the convention saw me even taJ kine with
you, I'd be ver.J severaly crj_ticized--mj_ght even l ose my job" he saiet .•
"But you made the statement to Dr.Tenney t hat you th9ught
I knew more about God in one week than you had known all yotlr life, and
you expressed a desire to meet me bccau.se you thought that perhaps I
might be able t o help t he church find God, did you not? 11
"That is quite tru.e Doctor Robinson--but dont you under­s
tand , the I.~Tethodi st officials in Boise {Idaho) have just passed a resolu­tion
condem!ling any l\ITethodist, and th:reatt::ming an3r t•.rethodist with ex-corl!
nunication wbo works for you, or even reads v.nat you w:r.i te ---you are
poison to the ~llethoclist ch1J:~ch ''"Whe!l was that resolution passed?" I asked the good Bishop. ·
"Day before yesterday" he rep lied,"and that means that
my friend 'l"enney 11'111 ':ave to stop '!>'Or kine; fo:r you, o:r we shall have t o
unfrock him. Now you understand lli'.Robinson,I am not at the back of
>
this--I am all f or you- -but the church as a whole hates you,and it hates
your philosophy,so I cannot afford to be seen even talking m.th you--wont
you please go?'
Smilingly I agreed no·b to embarrass the eood l'lA.n of God
any further . But I cculdn ' t resist the tcmptatJ.on to say, tvhen bidding
him "Good~bye ' "Now I understand how <Tesns Mu.st have fe l t when He
came unto His o~m . and they received Him not'
Page 139
•
A little vray back in this book I have briefly mentioned that
some twenty years before I r'et "The Y:'a.nderer", I first came to l'Ioscow with
\
Mrs. Robinson and little .lUfred. I had co roe, as you will recall• to work
for rtrr.Chas.Bolles (pronounced Bowles) nt t he Corner Drug Store '
· It was a miserable April day when we arrived . After paying all
expenses,we arrived in Moscow with $42 ,00 in otrr pocket . To be frank,'
did not like the City at all. Horses were tied to the hitching-posts in
feont of "Bull" Ward ' s hardware store,and altogether there was somethjng
about this little place that I did not like. We did ,however,engage a room
at the H0tel for one evening,:3.s we were all ti:red froM our trip fJom
Yakima.
I threaton~d time and tirfl0. o.e~!in that evening that I would not
work in 'ftt1oscow. I told rtrs . Robin~on to eet n good rest,as we -rould be on
our. way back to Spokane in the morning. '!e w8nt from Yakima to SpolGlne '
taking the Pal ouse Special at Spoknne , r..:ash.''
I had alr~ady called up Charley Bolles and informed him ·~hat
I was in Moscow, but was not ~oing to work for him. I told him that I
had given his drug-sto:te the "once-over11 and considered it n junl{-shop '
However,Charlie talked :me into staying one oonth,"junt to eet youx expenses
back" as he put it. I finally took a look at the pocket-book and agreed '
The next day we took an apartment at the old ~ltterfilld Apartments '
T}1at cost us $50 .00 per month.
V1hen I went to Vl~ork the next morning, I met a fellow called "Cap'
Ca.plinger was workins also for Bolles, and I sort of liked both of them.
Now,twenty years later,Charley Bolles and I aro v2:ry good f:rj_ends. He
still runs the Corner D:nlg StoJ.~e, aml every f ·ew days I drop in .s.nd visit
with hi~. He is one of the finest ~en I have aver met.
P&ge 140
By the end of the month I had Made up my mind to stay
in r.1os0ow. I had b,~{)lm to liKe it t t lot better . lt v.:e.s a different city
fro:t1 any I had V''OrkE·d in b!S'for~-- 2nst a s:nall college to~~~m of about
5000 people,.plus a Uni.Yersity of Ida.~o enrollment of about 2300.
The City of J~oscow enjoys a lov~l}r setting . It nestles in
a little hollo1~, and is surroundeD on three sides by rolling wheat-fields,
and on the other side by beautiful pine-covered Moscow M01 ' mt.ain . There '
in the autumn## one may rF:st under the shadow of those pines , whil e
the quivering and q11aking aspens l46»44~~ whispex to the nodding ,s ~~ying
pines. Altogether the scene is one of sheer beauty. I oft~n wonder now
what there was about Moscow l''hich made me dislike it so when I first
arrived here.Probably I sh~ll never h.-now. I never wo.nt to lmow.
I bad come to Moscow to l'I[J:'i te a philosophy of God which would
reveal the Pov-.rer of God to Alnerica , and ins ide of thirty days ·I had 15egun
to get my thoughts in order. I had never vn:-itten anything in my life . I had ·
never <1ra·vn up an Ftdvertj_s e·.Jent in :ny J_~_fe. I kne '', not hing about business.':L w~s just ~ common e;a:rden variety od registered pharmA.cist,good :for about
~
$200 a month. That is what Mr .Bolles paid me '
I 11sed to c ''.rry q. l~ttl e black pooke-'j-book round in the side
pockF:t of my coat,and whenever the Spirit of God won1.d e;iv~ me som~thing
o'f importance, out '/rotl.ld com~ thet ltttle book, and ! would jot it do,.,1n '
Both ''Cap" and Charlie Bolles often tried to figure out v.hat I vv"Rs VvTi ting
in that li ttlo black book. None of them sU:Spected,nor d1.d I, that as a
result of what I \'as VITi ting in that li t-lle black booK, s world movement
of large proportions would spring into existence . Personally·, I knew that
my experience with the Spirit of God was very renl . I knew I had a
message :for this world , of tremendous i mport . But how to get that message
to the American people h'3S something I had to figure out a lone. Alone?'
No--not quite alone . Page 141
When the S:-irit which in God snPke this univ~rse i!lto b~ing,He
c:bare:e!Cl Bn<l. ~nper·· ChDreeo it ~·Ji th e11~rgy sc <i.yna.rrio that the replacement
of even ~,t-1:1!' a' <'\t0ro is 8 ccompanied by the most d isastrons efff'cts '
ns thost=- de~d resident~ of ffiroshiJ71n and ~·agasak1. could testify. Our
scientist~ hnve discovered how to undo the hal'ldiwor.k of God . They have
rl~.scoveren to a little ~'ttent 2 how to undo what God did. That, J repeat ''
i~ d o ng~roup business.
Onfl' of two things will hF.tppen. These scientists
wil}. mal{e more d j scoveries o:F. atom-spJ 1 tting, and will place in the
h a:r..ds of the hunan race n pm.,.er so feArful that man will completely
destroy him::elf ·rith it,n.ot knOt·d.ng how to handle it- - - or---man will
make a correspondingly fitnpend.ous spiritual discovery which can nullify
the draadful power already unleAshed. lf man discovers the secret of
spiritual Poner1hP ''Till hav~ rl18cov~red eternal lif~ .rer~ on ea:r:th '
'Sternal li:f~ is the opposite of eternal death. Both
RrA poc:;~ible through tho knowledge "nan is on the vcre:e of' find:tnr;. So
far,ma.n has o11ly dincovered how to ~ro~ the atom . He is very close
to discovering hoV'' to create the atom. JJet us pray tha·t; man does just
t.hc-t.'''
'Ph~ ';taggc:ri:"lr; f'actn I s~1all relate to you at this
point a.re b,,t very ·~·ea,r .,vic!~nce of th,' transcendent Power which lies
availal:>le to us nll,through the tnvisibl~ Pcwer that is God. They will
Gf God vill do whc'1. the sA"Tet cf thRt Spirit becomes known,even if
only to an infini tnsirnal degree.
Par~ 150
I know pra ctically nothing about the Power of God . The best
that can be said ror m~ is ~hat I have a beiief which ~oes r~rhaps just
a lit~le bit beyond ordjn~~ beliefs in God . I hav~ l~arned,over the
years,thRt "ALL things are possiolo to .birn that heliP-vet;h '' . 1i'hrougn that
lit tle "t;iny shadow of a gliiJ111Jer o-t· actual 1'ai th in the flpj rit of" Go<l '
I have bAen a.ble i,o accom:pl ish ..~ hat, in the R~alm of' 'the Spirit of God
which perhaps no other individual has been able to accomplish. I have seen
mor e pr.esumed "miracles" than an._v man alive has seen, or an,v c hnrch has.
seen ~ in it's entire history. yver nv~ huncb:-e~ __ thp.!_AS,!E'!O -~t: tl'1!'_:!'TI--in t he#;J
ehort SP.ac ~.'.2!_2~n~y Y!.!E:~·
my
Yet even I, who had to bleed .b~H wa¥ througn to God through
op_lJosition v-.hich ha.A t~rri:tic,do not have :faith, :teven aR a gnnn of
m-w:;1;ard-s~eu " • I only wish I bao.. ' Yet tihe imi·i;ation fai"th I hnve ,has
bcun ~:nuJ.iC~l~tlt. vO bl'iltt'l "tO tlus e&rth,a concept o:f Go<i which, before it
.sacret of the actual existence or' tile Spirit of God on this earth,&nd
among men.
Few living today \"flll see 1,ha t day. Much as I hate to say
1 t , I am of the opinion thd. t Iuan will plt.y around with atomic enery
un"til he unleC:J.f:~ hes a iorce which he will never be able to leash aga~n '
ne hus u.~..scove:red such a f'oroe now. Perhaps some miracle will happen
which vd.ll res-train the nations frcrn flying at each other's throats
with a"tomic energy,which is only another words for God - energy. Perhaps that
will happen. But ·chere s eP-ms little chanoe of.' it hAppening, if' Senator
Pepper is right in 't;he reaarks he made, to 1Nhich I have alrearly referred '
ret us no-c deceive ourselves . Jt.an cannot mock Gorl . Nor '
oat, he ge~G as close to tl.Le secrets of God as he is now, Without eit!1P.r '
destroying himself completely , or, finuing -c.ae sec1·ut of God , which auto­Page
151
matically means di~cover:i.ng eternal life. That if-' the aim of' every
religion. But "they a.ll insis'c "Chat man has to die first. 'rhat ' is not
the plan of' GoO. however. I·c is L;od. 1s desire now,anct always has beE-n,
·that "the Life he gave to man in the first place should never end. The
idea. that ·chis earth is a testing-ground for a future li!'e is worn out '
It is an old church theory. It came from the Dark Ages . It has no
place in twentieth century theology.
i1'e live,as it were,in a dream. Here we are,w~ know v<re are
here, bu"G ·Ne do not knov.r why ~e are here. We do not know wher~ we ca".1e from
nor where ~ve ca:·e going. we know we are aliv e,we know we 1 ve to live,
but what tne me&ning of it all is '';e do not knov: •'
Yet life must have a meaning or we should not have life. That
there is a meaning to li.fe goes without saying. Each one of Ps is con-scious
of thd fact tna·t there must bA a far d~~p~r mP-ani.ng to ltf~
than we have yet been able to find . Th~re is. A te:rrJbly rleer ro"qning.
The littla life which you and I are living ~s so full of trern.nndous
potentialities that our minds wouJd reel und.e:r thA ehonk of i·t ::ill, could
- wa but even 1'ain·tly g.casp what is involved in this thing we call life '
I turn absoljlely sick at the stomacn as I wA-nner tnro•Jgh this
eari;h,tr;ving to the best of my ability to r~veal the Power of God t o the
multi tudes, when I see the pettyfogp;ing "r' leasnres" lVh:tch I'1ost of us
seem interested in,ignorin~ completely the deep~r tninps life holds.
I get even sicker Vlhen I see whisky-drinking,doP--loving,lecherous church­ij~~~~~~$~
p~l;)$~~~~lj:lnltt~!.~~·~·~)'~~;F.~t~~~eli
members trying to find what they never will find,but whRt they could find
i:f they would only take God seriously.
1.rhere .never was the dru.nkemH~ss, the debauchery, th~ .hate, the
foa:c, the lovv morals,tHe utter disregard :for truth there is on this earyh
today. No system of rnorality,no edifice worthy of the name of God can
Page 152
be erected on the false · '!o'..lndattons o-r our present civilization. It
!'ould not surprize Me in the le:lst j;f Tho Creator \U.d n:Jt nll.n-1 man t o
deliberately destrcv h~ r'Js thin s.to~ic fission . It rnt;::1t be a
goo~ thine i! Tic did. For then He could rec:t~ a ';tructure on tl1e ,arth
whj ch wonl~ b-. rn.o,'.~ J.nte.r~sted in t 1e thinGs pert;a~.n:=.ns t0 '}od and
et~rnal li.fe than this so~.r r:~sn of a civilization has ever l>ean.
You may be su.r~ of o!le thing--this c:i.vilization will
n0t coni:inue as it j_s. It w:l.ll e ither di3cover the Power of God,an<l turn
it's t:boughts to God,o:r '.twill disappNJ.r. No thinki!le mnn cun cee any
other alternqti. ve. I am t}Je laf:t ono to sco'.ff at~ or rn.:fre light of the
human ~f.fornt to securo :-m nc;TeP;ne!lt a_,ong the natton~ ,·;hereby '~'<:'.r
\"rill be totally eliminated frOCJ the "face of t:~1e ~arth . I ~hould be glad
to joi.:r in ar~y su.oh negotiations.
&~t they must a ll ~ail . They a~e man ' s negotiations '
They do not t&ke Goo into con!3idexati on,and any attempt to brine
pence ,happ:tncss,joy to thi~ em·th l~.:ithou.t plncinc God ric;ht jn i;h~
middle o~ those negi thrtion8, i~ worse than never having negotiated . '~en
I say "God", I am not re:ferrin~ to uny of th• anthropomorphis "man-gods"
of th~ various re lj r;ionfl ()f the ~~rth.' a:n ref :r.ring to tl:e on y God
~h~re can be--The Grest ~pirit ~hich cr~at~f llfe in the firct plDce t
nnd Wbich , momen~ by "moment,su ~t~i~ ~ that Jtf~.
God nevar co1.:ur, ha~ been an.;Tthine; e ls'! tban the ~uthor
a!".d Cre~tor of Id.fe. hat goes for t!'le ·.r('jry 1:1 fe ~-:e li.ve here on the
ea.rth. God must be in# the v.-:r:;· center of thn.t life. But jo you notice'?~Y of our peace ern:ir:H;~:r-1 '3S taking tbat fac7. into consi<1erat1cr~? I ol ame
nor.~ of them. The;y jus·t n ir~? l:;r hav~ n~t th<! f.'.i··,test c :)nception of the
E~tag._e:ring p,,l·~r l~'hich j~ Gcd,ar.-.d .'.'hiGh in a v!'.i.nble, vc-.ry nvr"ent of
the day or night,to 811 men.
Page 153
J.s ~pou :r·~ n d i;h~ few trwtnnc ~~; I she.ll :r ~l a t~ nt tl1:i.G point
tryinf so very hard to r~\:rry over tc) you 'ihrou.gh the ,s:1..r.'lple ~eniuiTl of
this book. You bav~ oiscoYer~cl by +h-i.s t:'me,in ;rotrr :r~adj_np.: of the book '
that my vocFlbu..lar;r tr; very 1 i.mi t;eo. Von l•:ill h~ve d:!.~lZ"overed that I do
net know bow to corre11t;ly build pA.rnc;:raphs,or ovnn sent~nces. You have not
read '1~T f'J0w0ry rh~toric--I am not cF-pRblc of ind.uJ.eing i:n it.
N:at you will finci in t:r.is book in an imrell:l.nc; urgf! to c-onv~y
hie;her
to ~rou,my r""B der, just q fnj.nt glirripse of ·vh~t a .Pnv'er , J''U.Ch ~)'~1ti!ti i;han
Pn~r power I pos8~'SE, CRl" do for ;you. I nrp only R broken vec.sel 'J'Ihich
k~epe cominr; bRck to the vmll to be f~. lle~l 3nc1 re-filled with what
few drops of water I rr>ny be able to hold. Tbe Po-..·~r bc-hind 1'1~ however,
is rreat, and the Power of Goli, which i.s rnad.e great throue.,h my wealmess '
is the Power I want you to know.
I have never be~n able to figure ov.t just why The AliPi~hty
spA.ke so very platn.ly to me, givine; me such a. responsib:!.lits·, when there
are so v~ry many m~n of :far g:reat:er cap~city thHl" I. There is an old
hyman that M~r be:Hutiful Christian mcth~r nsed to sine; to !'le mcmy ttmes
as I ~at Ol, h~r kne:!">. I s!-1<11 ne"~re:r forr:~t it.?Jor sh:->ll I eve-r forget
voic~
the s'•,reet ":tt:;t.,J ·-~r ::-ince ~tiJ:lt:d t:r. d~ath at the edrly .- g(:> of' tr:lrty-three '
v.thich uf:ed +o f':1nc r.:P- to slne:p t ' the melody of this •rc nder:f1.1l hyrrn '
"Oh to be nothing,nothine;
Onl~r to lie st Hi.r. :f'e10t •' A broken And f\illpt;y vcsse 1,
For +.hr Master ' s nse T"lade rner>t '
Th "~Y' cn"l~S to me nth is momt>r. t, an i~"lfj_nj_ t e 1 ove fc:r the ree.der . Yes--
it's an infinjte love for ::tll f:.'len. I have j st retuTned frcm Pull(T}an . Wash.
where I interview & broken-h<!artt'l'ld. father. H~ ·was a :father ancl a $~1t"$$1M~$
husi:land . Now he is neither . He may be a f'ather,we are still hoping he is '
Page 154
About one year ago , this ':o•re!'ler,t er.1ili;Jp~d a beautiful Yout h
Center t1ere in ~~o£co-.', i'herc the:r.·c '.2:'::11 the !~oney in the ~·;orld :for
dr1.nki ne ~no e:~,',b l i.ng c1 ub~, h1.1+ '' ot £l doJ.lRr for ou.r' youth. I ins~[llle d
the C~nt:~r nt a cost of !:'>bout ~18 . 000 P.nd 1.-t 's ope1:-a tion coots u.s ~bout
$500 a rr~onth, whi.ch w~-> B tan0 011t- o-r our own r-ocket.
1 n9.f fo.:rtmnat~: r~noueh to necure th~ ~~rvices o:f a very
h igh-class lady, a one Hrs ~ \Tulrt Nye to o:;:1e~.. t~ the Youth Center . Rhe was
l olled by all ' T}1e membe:rshtp of the center :!'A.pidly ros P. to eve!: 500
\
y oung pcopJe betwno' tbn Hf!/·~ of 1? and 19. TJ.1nt ccnte.Y :;r.'''!d.c ·it ' z •:~ark
on the O:i ty li f~ o:f Mosco''· Th~rr: has n<>ver been a rcc:;ec ta ~lc plact;
wher e our s cho o l -childr~n ·coul d 1'';0 after nchool ho1.:tr3 except filthy
p ool-hRlls where nxinkine; e.nc1 C1l.:-f'Si'1g is thn order of th," dr..l.y.
Th~rc; aTe a dozen churches in Mosc ow, eLoh of which could
have donated their bas~ments :for a Yc1.1th Center. But ~lo you think
the,y did'? You know the a.ns ' ter to that ;vi thout my· tell ing you. In cneir
sanotimcnj_ous, "holier- then-thou." ati;i tude , they shun.."led a.llY cl::ld all .:loti vi-t
tes whi ch mieht _possibly have been a. be!lefit t0 ou::- youth. And these
clos~d.
You s ee --t~rs . ~ye was found dead. in the Cont~r tl(JO l::eoks ago . Her
daughter Wny I.o1J has disap:peRr~c , le~v:5 ng o ~n~ ' c~;..~c note . The motbsr i s
Stv:'posed to ha~re co"l'li:i. tted snicide , •':hi en I nhRl J nE>ver believe . The
c oroner did not cc>ll for nn e.u.i.;ops~r , ~lth~ L.[,h "hY he Cli\1 not I shall never
l?a.ge 1 ~5
which if' hi"" 1lf!U~l. O!' f.'ing-pl.ncP, I hPlc jus-'; 1 eft r.r. y~--[;! brokCli-hearted
~lfoscow~-A.nd. now both of.' th.~m n:re sna-ppAd out of my life. For Godfl ~ake
t:'ll
I'll end it all.'
The brn -:~n-h~'a:trted :father an0 I at~ s. hit of hr~·!k:fast at
th~ Chiinrunan '' resto.u.r~nt in l llrnan, a:ftf~r t~hinb I ro"t1rrn~d to Ptoscow to
~T.rite some more o~ this book. ~~t I l~ft a broken-h~o.rted man i~ I ever
saw one . 'h~t ha~ :l.ll -t:hi~ to do ,,d.th the story of "The W~tr.dcrer''? Only
this. I saicl. I relt infinite pit:y ~.nd ncrro1·; for ev'):ry one of my :fellow-'''
~J'he lc~al undertak~r Ttl!fu.sed to bu:r,y Mr~. N;re until Y..r .1iya
had made over a lif~-inmtrtt.'1c9 policy to him • .And ·Lh~n he had •'}hrorged
tht:=~ nn0r, broJren-her .:rtec f3t.her c400 .for a cn:>ket v·hir~h :!'TO-)C.bl ~· d:1.d not
Catholic, she wa~ ';~hen ~:r.e dies, a J.~e:r.ber of The F..aster!l rt~r lo~g~.
So th~ priest did his stu.'ff first and then the Ep:\.sco?alian r;iniste:r
did hts la+.er.
mor~ money. Eoo7.e--bnoze- -and more 'bo0ze. Wolt'en--wom~m--and more W(;men.
FilthystN-f.tM and U'Ore i'ilthy stories . 'fnese are the things which
Page 156
s car my soul nc I tr~r, iR my hu.'tlble s~r1ple manner to _point the' eyes cf
Not a stngl t5: M:l..nist'1r in r:~osco w went nnaY. !1:D'loJY·,'. of'
brol<fln- .he a:rtRd . f'i:X . Nye . 'Not on(' ucrnber ~t, thA C ~ l~ . R ~.:.ttendc'J. '1er fu..l'leral '
suici de to0 • And t his :1.<: C'11:risti.'1n i t~r.
·tel l y ou. what hap_pr.me<'l. t o D.r.' C '"l. T ~nn~y.to v;hmn I hav~ before re:farrad ••
I~t me Aga:tn r'B.ke it W'!ry p·r_ain that tn ·.·r.rttine as I do on this sub j ect '
I do so becnuse of a feeli ne of r ighteo".ls tndienatiOl' whioh , in spite
of myself,sweeps over me when I b~~~ s.,e men, r:1intster0 of th~ Gos:-~' 1 '
supposed to be ex-.p~rts Oi1 God, i1ctine c:-.s th:;y l"!av~ a.ctcd . Yet they Are
not to ble.me . Th~'Y just simply do not: krlNir God , Fnd tht=>y wi1J act a~ they
have been actine; for thE"; p:'1.st two t1 l0n.C'l~;~d years until they do know God '' rdr;..lcnlons n thj_l'1f'r> w'l1 i.ch hBpp~ne-c~., in the n~~t chr'l.:ptcr.
'
The Spirit and the PoV'!er of God were very close to me
in those baby days of Psychiana. Fll'er.t spare moment I had was spent a l one
with God . I op~ned u_p the innennost secrets of oy heart . I told Him I
knew there were TOlA.gh$ times ahead . 1-Tust hm7 rough I did not know.
But God ~d I became so very e;lose that there never t•as any question
in my mind about t~e recvcnent I should shortly sti.trt , s·weeping ro'.md t he
worl d . That s eemed to be a f oregone c oncl usion '
I had a. message :f::OIJ.1 God . It was t he message which
would save t his tA:orl d from destruction i f it ever \\as saved_. 1bat message­would
r ock the Chrit~tian church t o it ' s very foundati ons. It would bri ng
do1.'vn. on my head the concentrated hatred of all systerns of religi on.
I knew these '::hi ngs :full vrell. Yet the thought of' ever hesi tati ng or
s t opptne nt-1ver once entered my mind. As :f'ar as I was concerned,
I \'ras el.reeay on my way.Tie.B.ework I had b0en called to do was not my
work . It was not in m3r own :interests . I had :personclly found God, and I
had found a rapport 'Nlth God ··vhich \~as abs olute and complete . I could hav e
done anything I war..ted to f oT myself, thro-,lgh the PoTer I had so recsntl y
f ound.
But t;od had oth~r plans . I am glad lie did have . l:..s I loo
back this evening , I would not have one tl1ing different . I would not
change a singl e e=perience . I should do the va1 y sa·ne things over again.
If I hav e been lax in anything in bringing this Movement into existence,
it has b~en in not worki ng hard en ough. Perhaps I ha~e taken things
a bit too easy. ~hen I ponder on the cundi·tions e~ isting in the
wor ld now, s ome twenty years later, t he urge t o doubl e ny efforts keeps
me ha:rnessed t o the task set before me. I never know from one clay
to the next , just what my p l nns vdll be . I do not vnow nhat a day
vvill bri..ng forth . I do not care . About the onl y tr.ing I know is that
i f t his worl d. does not fj_nd the l'ower of God very soon, it will perish •
.Pa ge 142
I had not be.en iJ:. Moscow sixty days until I v-;as renting the
dining-room at the iTotel of zon AV~:ni ne;' payi ~e f~f/Jf/1/1## five dollars a
night,and giving lectu:res on "the Power of God. I hed never made a public
lecture i n my life before,yet it was my dut y; whenever and wherever an
opportunity occured,to tell my f'ell ow- A!!ler!.cans what the ?owor of God
could do for them.'"~~f.oscow is,as I have s-t-ated, a uniYersity torm. That
means that most of the br~ins in the State of Id~o arG concentrated
here in ~~oscow . You can imag:tne th<3t it took quite ~- bit of co·vrag:J
to giVE' publi~ ad;lros<:"es o~ the Po·~~·er c.E' GoJ . It \\'3.8 net too long
hovrever until we could not seat the crot~Vds ·t;hat came . Prominent among
my audience were many college professors, both mal e ancl female. Usually· I
would throw the meetings open for questions.
011c oyeni.ne, a l '. d.y college .J)rofess0:r .vho is •;;~e ll
known bere in ~t.oscow , 'l:tneertook to stv.mp me . nMay I ar.>k a question? rr she
inquired. "Certainly ·'1~tdam--'t'~l:n=rt is you:!:' que:::tion?'. W:zll could the
Power of God, o:f ~hich you hc>Vt'J been speaking, gror'l a ne·N leg on .:m old
CO VI' who had had an accident and had it's leg cut o:ff?''
A sn~~cker went through the e.udicnce '.~nd a. se!lSe''
of ;'l!)frchen~ion , for rrl''ny of tlnse tb.o:re 1men that in $e~~~~~~ an
r eplied: - "I do not kno~: madam--suppose you go and haye your l eg cut
off and we '',.lill finn out ' I ~~va often ~P.e~ sor~ that I made that
r ejoinder. Nevertb~less,it was apr~)OS I beli eve tn that -meeting and
with that :particul:?.r pxo.f,ossor present '
!\1oscmv bad never kn.Ol'vn nnytf!ing like t his . It has not
seen another drug clerk either 'be:fore.or s ince who filled prescri:ptioa
and sold rat-and gopher poison all day and then lectured on t he Page 143
·.
Power of the Spirit of God at nie;ht. !lfacy woul1 s nc me on the street
the day after the me~ting,and one would point to hi~ he~d with the
:first :finger of his ri~ht h~nd,and wiggl~ the fiPgPr roun<'l tn a circular
manner. Hov'eVP..r, the cro!!id~ came until the Unt v~rs ity mf Idallo issued an
order that no ~emh~r of the ~eculty w~s hereafter permitted to attend my
lectures. Th8t was the first rebt~f I s1~fered in this Movement. I w~sh
it had been the only one. The farther the Movement eoes though,the more ~1.
severe have be0n tho attempts to stop it. Wov~the picture is finally
changing. Even universities (religious departments) nre invitine me to
speak,and that really is ono for the book.
The churches too--the impression s~P.rnP to be slo 'ly
ga ininp; H~ ad-r"ly th:-1t "perh~p~ that me"" Robinson hflP something ·,re
should h~ve". Thero is 11 1-tle fJUOS tion ebo,,t 1i'b~t. I 'Ortld to God the
churcheq had hAlf the desirP. to r~veal +.he Pow~r of God to the ·vorld that
I have. There v·ould then co'le th~ grandPst spiritual qwakening this
old t•vorld hn.s ever known. I cannot do tt ~l oPe. I can do,rmd have done
much ~or one man. But if all our chur :hes were to lay flside thei:r pre­judices,
and their self-~Om-placcncy,and <m~p out of the::l.r spiritual
letharey,what a brieh~ world this woul1 be. Perhaps they ~111 some
day. Who knows. But it will have to be speedily I am afraid '
By the tim-e the little black note-beak was fai.'.ly well
filled ll'lith notes, I had the outline of t'Vhat I anted to write about ready '
I had no typewriter And no ITIO"ley IVith which "to buy one. So I borrowed
one fror'l CP.rey Smith ,n loc'll clothes clc':lner , ~tVho still op~ra+es here
in our ~mall City. C~rey s~ith en1 I qnd a dcnt~st had a wondcrf1li
time at the Bungalo·v,array bock in hilJ.s,fishiTlc;,t:1e first ye'lr I ··~s
here. I shall never forget -t:tmt trir. I bave had sli<tca made of the
Page 144'''
pictures we '";ook t11er~. I :run them every once 1 n a whi 1e ••.;h~n I h8ve
ti'l'!e on ny hn:t1ds, which is very seldor11.
It - ~~s en old Corona Ca~ey loanen me . I later bou~ht it
t~· O!ll him f'or f:tve dollars. I still hAve 1 t in my possession and prlbze
i-t; vertJ hie:hly. As yNt know,the drug stored in Voscow close at six,rather
they did at thet time. Satu~day evening ~as the exception. The closing hour
on Saturday niehts wa~ 9 p.m. One Saturday fftght I too){ home a ream
of pa.per which I had !Ynrchsed f':rom th~ Corner Drug V'ihere I worked,
went into my bedroom and asked the good lady of the house not to
disturb me. She ho'loxed my re~nast.
I wrote Rll night. I wore my :ftngers to the bone almost
before I had finished the first twenty Psychiana Lessons . Believe it or
not,as I sit h~re writing this book,both index finsers are,at this
moment taped . I have been writing continuously### twelve hours a day,
for the past three vreeks . My index 1'L"lgers are the only ones I use
wnen typine. I never dicate a book. I never write in in long-hand first '
I never begin a book tmless I have my m ess~ge clearly in my mind '
Then,! si:t down and w:ctte,day and night 'lmtil thP. book is _
finished. After i t is finished I never '"rant to look ·at the menusoript
again. I send it to the nrj.nter. or pnblisher,~nd,somtathlbng like M~rk
Twain,,.ho used to type a whole page of commas and periods and te l l
the printer to put them where they belonged,! let the publisher or
p:tinter nake thf' corrections. This hE?~pons to be 'fluesrlay night,Anf"U.st
the 13t:b.. 1946. I have been l'iXiting const:)ntly and wit"lou.t ft b:reak for
even c me'1l :-=:incP. s·even -t:'h1.s 1'11orning, and 1t in ~t'eVf'!1-th1rty at night '
Thi~ is 1rnmateri8l to the subj~ct matte:r of this bc6k,
of cou.rne , b,~t: you may f:i.nd 1 t ir.tr·resting. If you dont ~ dont read lt '
----------------------~~----------------~ -------~---PAUA ~A~ ----------~~------
When the entire ~ t!t of tn_, firs+, t~ ·enty JJesnons v1as finished '
the real work was abcJ1lt to f:l+.art. Th~ Lesson in f:!.nding the Power of
the Spirit o! God were a-:' of.'footiv~ '=",s I could m 2J<:~ them. They contained
the best I had. The problem hor1ever, wa~ how to proceAd f r om that point
on. It CoPts plonty of' money to st8rt a rcltr,ious iTovemcnt by nni" ex­pociPlly
the printing m.nterinl . I f!hall ju~t nketch br:tefly the high­lightG
of how the phy::ical Tla:rt of thi.s Hovement was developed.' It i~ a
very intcrost~.ng story,c:nd ono whioh I do not bel!ovl! ev-er hm, neen,c.r
ever !!fill be duplioated.
Handing the finished l~sc~on to Mr~ .Robinson I said:- "You
mieht ;rP.ad ther:e v.hile you are at workJ if yot, :rtill ''
A'ftcr nh~ ha\l r~ a n them I as}:ed her 'for the verdict. I+ v:as
good. But sh~ did not sr..e hcv; T ·vvulf! ever be a.blc to get tl~e!r: printed
and r.tnrt tho t•ovement: on it • n r;a3r . I did the best ·(;hing I could think
of,ano 'cP:>t on doinc j".Ast tl~at . I too:~ the onJ.y way :·hich seemed op.Jn,and
I st:tll do.
I knew thnt f;2'500 wo·ul0 be- neccssm·y. Those tvumty Les~ons
had to b~ printed. nr.edcd. one thousand se:=r: of e'"rh. I aln o u~f!ded
ten -+:honsnnd se+:-:; of lntt:crs •·hinh t ·ere to be r:ent to ru.l who answcr~d
my advert:\.somcntn. I }:J'1e ' - o:f no l)~'ber i':ay to s·t8rt. the ~~~·t$ Mover11ent
other thnn by mo.tl I l< nP.''' I conlcl T('!flCh more people in that r.1annor sand
I lne't'! the more people I could reach in thn qn.L::l>:e5t possible time , would
sprelld the ·~ood news of the Po·wer of God. 'fRste:r. thrm en~r other m~?thod I
kner" of. But l';her ;·rRa the ~?. 500 to com-e fro'i'?
One evening, after dinr.er, I took 01.1t my overcoat,packed. trw
twenty lessons in Rn old bricf-c3sc I had,o.nd reahing for my hat Gaid
Page 146'
to Mrs.Robinson:- "I'm g ~ '. j.ng do~"n to·~m ':lnd ~~'ill be back in ~;, few
hous.n
She inaui:red w}'n:re I vvas eoint: ~nd whPt 1 W<J<' goir>t to do,as a
loving wife should.' tnl<i h~r that ·I need en ~? 500 ~~.~ '.m.r: c;oing dm\n
tmm to e;et it.
uBut you dont know nnyone i::'l ~~oscow- -can you r,et t2500
here?''"If I c~n 't, I h~ve:r\t r;ot the ri.ght :rbilo!3o~h~c of God" I
told he:r. In lec:s than th:r.~e h01.1:rs I ~··n' back ·~!1.+h tho stl.fll net?ded. This
iE how I did i.t. I ~~'11.t f:i:rst to the drt:tg store, 9.nd stood in the entrance
with the b:rief- case containin~ the Lessons l:nsidc it. 'l'he first Man who
came alonr; was Ned Phillips . Ned was manager of Lane's Thrift Stores,
directly across the street. I .had got·ten rather we 11 acquainted with
Nect, and 1 liked him • . h'vidently he liked me too. ~.,~~$ lJed stopped
to pa ~ s the time of day in the usual friendly manner,when I said to
hiro ~- "Ned--have you a:n.y money?'. Lool{ing at me rnther curiously he
sa:td;- "I have a little mom"Vy--why?' "Then come into the drug store.
I want to show you sanethine" I re,lied to r:red. Inside th~ drug store
I opened the l)rie:f nar-;e anfl shm~.red 1-·dm the :.r.esson~ I hnCI jus t com_::leted '
'*I a.m going to bring to this earth en utterly new picture
I
o:r God Ned,and. I need $2500 to start th'9 1 ' oyement going--can you help?" I
· asked him.
11Well I dont kn01'".' you very -well Frank, but I think this world
certainly needs a new concept o:r t;.od ~~ or it ,-1111 gc' to bell sure" he
replied.'"Ho''' much rroney can you let rr:e ha'Te N~!d?" I t:ben inquired.'"Oh-.' -about f500•' he replie\1., He gave rne the five hUIJdred
Page 147
dollars and did not nsk for a note or any ot her ~ort of security. Just
gave me a check. I th<Jnkcd hin and askurl hin if he ~::ne?J 0f u:nyone else
who !'lit:ht rmnt to g).v-e me another :?i ve hu:.(b·ed dollars. :led thought f or
a ..1ooent and the:1 sald:- 11 Gf;!orBe Benson,my brothor-in-hm h:tr. :ftve
htmdr~d dollnrs , nnd I think he '11 le~ yo.u have it'
Georo) Benso:1 war; then, end still iG ~ partner in "Bull"
\'.H.rcl 's har,lware G tore, the some storl') •vh:i.ch provided the hitching-posts
which ha·i ::o irri..,~ated m~ on my arr ival in ~~osc ov1 . Asl:ing Ned to call
Geor~e, r.hich he di d ,Ltt took :rte ju.st n few rr:oments to ex:}!lain to George Ben-sen
whnt I 1:anted the money for. George Gave me another fi vc h1.mdred
dollaru '?hat w:1s one tho,.lS[!:-ld dol lar~ the fi.rst h!ll :f hotrr ''"Yo·a two boys shouJ.(~ know som .one ~ lsc ~ho wo11J.d like to
help r.te make God real to the world--oon 't you?" I said,'
"Well there ':J Elm~~ .Ande:>:"00n, asnistant cv.shier of the
bc!nk across ';he {!~~ street , ho! !3hou11 hava S O.;-' mo wy" Sctid George B~nson '
"Then cull hi1:1 up" I requested . In abou:t fifteen minutes
.El mer And•:!r.s on ceJGe dc''.T• . Inc i de:-rta l ly, El i!le:' Anderson has l>een business
manager :!or Psychiflna f o-r: -+·he '">ast s:txtc~en y~ ars. He h.'ld seven lmndred
a.nl fifty dollars •t:h~~l1 Le eave T1<' 1 )]tine '.:ihe -t;o~a l eiven -to me by
only sever: ' lL~'1d!ed .3i.nd ,:'i.:lt~r \Jol1ars more . I askP.d thcrr: -';o sugsest s omeone
else, and they su.__:r;es ted the na!"l.:a of Of:cnr Anderson, ·who li v~d ab011't
ten mil e~ ou~ i n i;he c r.:untry . Pil i·De: into Elrr.l'!r Ander~ on 's car, we' all headed 'trhrnugh ~he :~no;·.; f or OSC'"t· A.''h1erso.n ' s p l ace . Ti1.c s-tory r.;as
the .san:e there . He ';~.ve me seven hnndred '.:to.d fj:fty dolle.rs, and th~ '
SU!Il I needed had been give t 0 me , in a 3tt·ang~ town, by men 'fh:hO had
known me lee!': than sixtJ' days. I vr~s very happy , and kner: t:b_at God .'l.'as
taking c.al"C of the finances.
Page 148
It was juet tv o t:mc1 onn-half hours ':-.ftnr I hnd left the
apartment that I re"ttUT.ed ~ f'lll'l:rolf!:tn:' the cbecl~~ on +.he t~'bJ.e I said to
M:rs.Rohinf':on~- "T ere i~ "th~ tl-;cnty-f'iYe hundred rtolJ.ars '
She looked at rr.c and said:- "Th~ -aw ot: God ~ wm~,'''
doesn't it;'. '• I tH.L'il.ittl!ld tha t ~Jhe Spj.:r1t of God ht!~ recpcnded r-o f .']X' '
bnt would respon"i to a f:xr gr~ater dear~e "">ct'orc vc~r lon~ . r;-..~. en than
ph.-ilo~"""hY of G,)d into ~ixty-~~ven different cc1rJ.t1 s,:for thnt 18 exactl y
~nh ~t happen'!d o
At thiC! po nt I bel"!e,re ! r'~'111. "tell the reader the
facts about the !1ame "P~YCP1ANA" and ho"! i-+; C'flme :tn+,o existence, mhe
story hac been very inacc:nrnt~ly -+;ol(l by 1'Ti t~rs "for newspapers nnd
rnagazine~,l\"hone imagination was greater than their de~ire for truth '
Here , you will r~ad th~ story as it actuelly happen~d '
I do not con5id.er tber~ io anythi1~g m"~raculouf' or super­natural
abou+, an.y or the c:rt::.R!lt:e h~ppem:tnes I shall r.elat~ to ~rou at
this point o Fer f:rom hP.i!Jg mj.ra~nl en~ or supern~tDr[\1, the~r are most
b€nuti f\tlJ.y naturAl. 'l:'h~se 11.:re the thint;s vni~h h~p:r en <:t'..ltona1itcnlly
rt!len one leams the ~f'ore+ of n.c"tu_,~l <'Of"l"lu,.,ion l"i'th the Spirit o-r God '
\\hen this world be01ns to lenrn ;c;n Me+.hin~ of the .:lctunl nnd li tcml
Power mich lie~ latent in the R~alm of Goo, only v:~i ting 'for u~ to
use it,life on thic pJa.n~-t; v;j.}_l be differen-t I assnre ;rou.
In thr. disco"T ''.:-y of the at o~ic ho:nb ·nr.r: :\.~ j 1ct bcein:ninc; .to
discover. that there 1 s a lot more Power i:r thic n '. rer!::e than be ever
d:r:-camed possible . 'fuat man is 3ctu.'Jlly doinr; in ~!'1 t tting tbr: etcr., j_s
undoinrr ~~~ thP. w0rks of thf:' Cr.oator. That--1~ dane;erous bu.s iness.
Page 149
When the S:-irit which in God snPke this univ~rse i!lto b~ing,He
c:bare:e!Cl Bn<l. ~nper·· ChDreeo it ~·Ji th e11~rgy sc <i.yna.rrio that the replacement
of even ~,t-1:1!' a' <'\t0ro is 8 ccompanied by the most d isastrons efff'cts '
ns thost=- de~d resident~ of ffiroshiJ71n and ~·agasak1. could testify. Our
scientist~ hnve discovered how to undo the hal'ldiwor.k of God . They have
rl~.scoveren to a little ~'ttent 2 how to undo what God did. That, J repeat ''
i~ d o ng~roup business.
Onfl' of two things will hF.tppen. These scientists
wil}. mal{e more d j scoveries o:F. atom-spJ 1 tting, and will place in the
h a:r..ds of the hunan race n pm.,.er so feArful that man will completely
destroy him::elf ·rith it,n.ot knOt·d.ng how to handle it- - - or---man will
make a correspondingly fitnpend.ous spiritual discovery which can nullify
the draadful power already unleAshed. lf man discovers the secret of
spiritual Poner1hP ''Till hav~ rl18cov~red eternal lif~ .rer~ on ea:r:th '
'Sternal li:f~ is the opposite of eternal death. Both
RrA poc:;~ible through tho knowledge "nan is on the vcre:e of' find:tnr;. So
far,ma.n has o11ly dincovered how to ~ro~ the atom . He is very close
to discovering hoV'' to create the atom. JJet us pray tha·t; man does just
t.hc-t.'''
'Ph~ ';taggc:ri:"lr; f'actn I s~1all relate to you at this
point a.re b,,t very ·~·ea,r .,vic!~nce of th,' transcendent Power which lies
availal:>le to us nll,through the tnvisibl~ Pcwer that is God. They will
Gf God vill do whc'1. the sA"Tet cf thRt Spirit becomes known,even if
only to an infini tnsirnal degree.
Par~ 150
I know pra ctically nothing about the Power of God . The best
that can be said ror m~ is ~hat I have a beiief which ~oes r~rhaps just
a lit~le bit beyond ordjn~~ beliefs in God . I hav~ l~arned,over the
years,thRt "ALL things are possiolo to .birn that heliP-vet;h '' . 1i'hrougn that
lit tle "t;iny shadow of a gliiJ111Jer o-t· actual 1'ai th in the flpj rit of" Go<l '
I have bAen a.ble i,o accom:pl ish ..~ hat, in the R~alm of' 'the Spirit of God
which perhaps no other individual has been able to accomplish. I have seen
mor e pr.esumed "miracles" than an._v man alive has seen, or an,v c hnrch has.
seen ~ in it's entire history. yver nv~ huncb:-e~ __ thp.!_AS,!E'!O -~t: tl'1!'_:!'TI--in t he#;J
ehort SP.ac ~.'.2!_2~n~y Y!.!E:~·
my
Yet even I, who had to bleed .b~H wa¥ througn to God through
op_lJosition v-.hich ha.A t~rri:tic,do not have :faith, :teven aR a gnnn of
m-w:;1;ard-s~eu " • I only wish I bao.. ' Yet tihe imi·i;ation fai"th I hnve ,has
bcun ~:nuJ.iC~l~tlt. vO bl'iltt'l "tO tlus e&rth,a concept o:f Go<i which, before it
.sacret of the actual existence or' tile Spirit of God on this earth,&nd
among men.
Few living today \"flll see 1,ha t day. Much as I hate to say
1 t , I am of the opinion thd. t Iuan will plt.y around with atomic enery
un"til he unleC:J.f:~ hes a iorce which he will never be able to leash aga~n '
ne hus u.~..scove:red such a f'oroe now. Perhaps some miracle will happen
which vd.ll res-train the nations frcrn flying at each other's throats
with a"tomic energy,which is only another words for God - energy. Perhaps that
will happen. But ·chere s eP-ms little chanoe of.' it hAppening, if' Senator
Pepper is right in 't;he reaarks he made, to 1Nhich I have alrearly referred '
ret us no-c deceive ourselves . Jt.an cannot mock Gorl . Nor '
oat, he ge~G as close to tl.Le secrets of God as he is now, Without eit!1P.r '
destroying himself completely , or, finuing -c.ae sec1·ut of God , which auto­Page
151
matically means di~cover:i.ng eternal life. That if-' the aim of' every
religion. But "they a.ll insis'c "Chat man has to die first. 'rhat ' is not
the plan of' GoO. however. I·c is L;od. 1s desire now,anct always has beE-n,
·that "the Life he gave to man in the first place should never end. The
idea. that ·chis earth is a testing-ground for a future li!'e is worn out '
It is an old church theory. It came from the Dark Ages . It has no
place in twentieth century theology.
i1'e live,as it were,in a dream. Here we are,w~ know v<re are
here, bu"G ·Ne do not knov.r why ~e are here. We do not know wher~ we ca".1e from
nor where ~ve ca:·e going. we know we are aliv e,we know we 1 ve to live,
but what tne me&ning of it all is '';e do not knov: •'
Yet life must have a meaning or we should not have life. That
there is a meaning to li.fe goes without saying. Each one of Ps is con-scious
of thd fact tna·t there must bA a far d~~p~r mP-ani.ng to ltf~
than we have yet been able to find . Th~re is. A te:rrJbly rleer ro"qning.
The littla life which you and I are living ~s so full of trern.nndous
potentialities that our minds wouJd reel und.e:r thA ehonk of i·t ::ill, could
- wa but even 1'ain·tly g.casp what is involved in this thing we call life '
I turn absoljlely sick at the stomacn as I wA-nner tnro•Jgh this
eari;h,tr;ving to the best of my ability to r~veal the Power of God t o the
multi tudes, when I see the pettyfogp;ing "r' leasnres" lVh:tch I'1ost of us
seem interested in,ignorin~ completely the deep~r tninps life holds.
I get even sicker Vlhen I see whisky-drinking,doP--loving,lecherous church­ij~~~~~~$~
p~l;)$~~~~lj:lnltt~!.~~·~·~)'~~;F.~t~~~eli
members trying to find what they never will find,but whRt they could find
i:f they would only take God seriously.
1.rhere .never was the dru.nkemH~ss, the debauchery, th~ .hate, the
foa:c, the lovv morals,tHe utter disregard :for truth there is on this earyh
today. No system of rnorality,no edifice worthy of the name of God can
Page 152
be erected on the false · '!o'..lndattons o-r our present civilization. It
!'ould not surprize Me in the le:lst j;f Tho Creator \U.d n:Jt nll.n-1 man t o
deliberately destrcv h~ r'Js thin s.to~ic fission . It rnt;::1t be a
goo~ thine i! Tic did. For then He could rec:t~ a ';tructure on tl1e ,arth
whj ch wonl~ b-. rn.o,'.~ J.nte.r~sted in t 1e thinGs pert;a~.n:=.ns t0 '}od and
et~rnal li.fe than this so~.r r:~sn of a civilization has ever l>ean.
You may be su.r~ of o!le thing--this c:i.vilization will
n0t coni:inue as it j_s. It w:l.ll e ither di3cover the Power of God,an<l turn
it's t:boughts to God,o:r '.twill disappNJ.r. No thinki!le mnn cun cee any
other alternqti. ve. I am t}Je laf:t ono to sco'.ff at~ or rn.:fre light of the
human ~f.fornt to securo :-m nc;TeP;ne!lt a_,ong the natton~ ,·;hereby '~'<:'.r
\"rill be totally eliminated frOCJ the "face of t:~1e ~arth . I ~hould be glad
to joi.:r in ar~y su.oh negotiations.
&~t they must a ll ~ail . They a~e man ' s negotiations '
They do not t&ke Goo into con!3idexati on,and any attempt to brine
pence ,happ:tncss,joy to thi~ em·th l~.:ithou.t plncinc God ric;ht jn i;h~
middle o~ those negi thrtion8, i~ worse than never having negotiated . '~en
I say "God", I am not re:ferrin~ to uny of th• anthropomorphis "man-gods"
of th~ various re lj r;ionfl ()f the ~~rth.' a:n ref :r.ring to tl:e on y God
~h~re can be--The Grest ~pirit ~hich cr~at~f llfe in the firct plDce t
nnd Wbich , momen~ by "moment,su ~t~i~ ~ that Jtf~.
God nevar co1.:ur, ha~ been an.;Tthine; e ls'! tban the ~uthor
a!".d Cre~tor of Id.fe. hat goes for t!'le ·.r('jry 1:1 fe ~-:e li.ve here on the
ea.rth. God must be in# the v.-:r:;· center of thn.t life. But jo you notice'?~Y of our peace ern:ir:H;~:r-1 '3S taking tbat fac7. into consi<1erat1cr~? I ol ame
nor.~ of them. The;y jus·t n ir~? l:;r hav~ n~t th<! f.'.i··,test c :)nception of the
E~tag._e:ring p,,l·~r l~'hich j~ Gcd,ar.-.d .'.'hiGh in a v!'.i.nble, vc-.ry nvr"ent of
the day or night,to 811 men.
Page 153
J.s ~pou :r·~ n d i;h~ few trwtnnc ~~; I she.ll :r ~l a t~ nt tl1:i.G point
tryinf so very hard to r~\:rry over tc) you 'ihrou.gh the ,s:1..r.'lple ~eniuiTl of
this book. You bav~ oiscoYer~cl by +h-i.s t:'me,in ;rotrr :r~adj_np.: of the book '
that my vocFlbu..lar;r tr; very 1 i.mi t;eo. Von l•:ill h~ve d:!.~lZ"overed that I do
net know bow to corre11t;ly build pA.rnc;:raphs,or ovnn sent~nces. You have not
read '1~T f'J0w0ry rh~toric--I am not cF-pRblc of ind.uJ.eing i:n it.
N:at you will finci in t:r.is book in an imrell:l.nc; urgf! to c-onv~y
hie;her
to ~rou,my r""B der, just q fnj.nt glirripse of ·vh~t a .Pnv'er , J''U.Ch ~)'~1ti!ti i;han
Pn~r power I pos8~'SE, CRl" do for ;you. I nrp only R broken vec.sel 'J'Ihich
k~epe cominr; bRck to the vmll to be f~. lle~l 3nc1 re-filled with what
few drops of water I rr>ny be able to hold. Tbe Po-..·~r bc-hind 1'1~ however,
is rreat, and the Power of Goli, which i.s rnad.e great throue.,h my wealmess '
is the Power I want you to know.
I have never be~n able to figure ov.t just why The AliPi~hty
spA.ke so very platn.ly to me, givine; me such a. responsib:!.lits·, when there
are so v~ry many m~n of :far g:reat:er cap~city thHl" I. There is an old
hyman that M~r be:Hutiful Christian mcth~r nsed to sine; to !'le mcmy ttmes
as I ~at Ol, h~r kne:!">. I s!-1<11 ne"~re:r forr:~t it.?Jor sh:->ll I eve-r forget
voic~
the s'•,reet ":tt:;t.,J ·-~r ::-ince ~tiJ:lt:d t:r. d~ath at the edrly .- g(:> of' tr:lrty-three '
v.thich uf:ed +o f':1nc r.:P- to slne:p t ' the melody of this •rc nder:f1.1l hyrrn '
"Oh to be nothing,nothine;
Onl~r to lie st Hi.r. :f'e10t •' A broken And f\illpt;y vcsse 1,
For +.hr Master ' s nse T"lade rner>t '
Th "~Y' cn"l~S to me nth is momt>r. t, an i~"lfj_nj_ t e 1 ove fc:r the ree.der . Yes--
it's an infinjte love for ::tll f:.'len. I have j st retuTned frcm Pull(T}an . Wash.
where I interview & broken-h<!artt'l'ld. father. H~ ·was a :father ancl a $~1t"$$1M~$
husi:land . Now he is neither . He may be a f'ather,we are still hoping he is '
Page 154
About one year ago , this ':o•re!'ler,t er.1ili;Jp~d a beautiful Yout h
Center t1ere in ~~o£co-.', i'herc the:r.·c '.2:'::11 the !~oney in the ~·;orld :for
dr1.nki ne ~no e:~,',b l i.ng c1 ub~, h1.1+ '' ot £l doJ.lRr for ou.r' youth. I ins~[llle d
the C~nt:~r nt a cost of !:'>bout ~18 . 000 P.nd 1.-t 's ope1:-a tion coots u.s ~bout
$500 a rr~onth, whi.ch w~-> B tan0 011t- o-r our own r-ocket.
1 n9.f fo.:rtmnat~: r~noueh to necure th~ ~~rvices o:f a very
h igh-class lady, a one Hrs ~ \Tulrt Nye to o:;:1e~.. t~ the Youth Center . Rhe was
l olled by all ' T}1e membe:rshtp of the center :!'A.pidly ros P. to eve!: 500
\
y oung pcopJe betwno' tbn Hf!/·~ of 1? and 19. TJ.1nt ccnte.Y :;r.'''!d.c ·it ' z •:~ark
on the O:i ty li f~ o:f Mosco''· Th~rr: has n<>ver been a rcc:;ec ta ~lc plact;
wher e our s cho o l -childr~n ·coul d 1'';0 after nchool ho1.:tr3 except filthy
p ool-hRlls where nxinkine; e.nc1 C1l.:-f'Si'1g is thn order of th," dr..l.y.
Th~rc; aTe a dozen churches in Mosc ow, eLoh of which could
have donated their bas~ments :for a Yc1.1th Center. But ~lo you think
the,y did'? You know the a.ns ' ter to that ;vi thout my· tell ing you. In cneir
sanotimcnj_ous, "holier- then-thou." ati;i tude , they shun.."led a.llY cl::ld all .:loti vi-t
tes whi ch mieht _possibly have been a. be!lefit t0 ou::- youth. And these
clos~d.
You s ee --t~rs . ~ye was found dead. in the Cont~r tl(JO l::eoks ago . Her
daughter Wny I.o1J has disap:peRr~c , le~v:5 ng o ~n~ ' c~;..~c note . The motbsr i s
Stv:'posed to ha~re co"l'li:i. tted snicide , •':hi en I nhRl J nE>ver believe . The
c oroner did not cc>ll for nn e.u.i.;ops~r , ~lth~ L.[,h "hY he Cli\1 not I shall never
l?a.ge 1 ~5
which if' hi"" 1lf!U~l. O!' f.'ing-pl.ncP, I hPlc jus-'; 1 eft r.r. y~--[;! brokCli-hearted
~lfoscow~-A.nd. now both of.' th.~m n:re sna-ppAd out of my life. For Godfl ~ake
t:'ll
I'll end it all.'
The brn -:~n-h~'a:trted :father an0 I at~ s. hit of hr~·!k:fast at
th~ Chiinrunan '' resto.u.r~nt in l llrnan, a:ftf~r t~hinb I ro"t1rrn~d to Ptoscow to
~T.rite some more o~ this book. ~~t I l~ft a broken-h~o.rted man i~ I ever
saw one . 'h~t ha~ :l.ll -t:hi~ to do ,,d.th the story of "The W~tr.dcrer''? Only
this. I saicl. I relt infinite pit:y ~.nd ncrro1·; for ev'):ry one of my :fellow-'''
~J'he lc~al undertak~r Ttl!fu.sed to bu:r,y Mr~. N;re until Y..r .1iya
had made over a lif~-inmtrtt.'1c9 policy to him • .And ·Lh~n he had •'}hrorged
tht:=~ nn0r, broJren-her .:rtec f3t.her c400 .for a cn:>ket v·hir~h :!'TO-)C.bl ~· d:1.d not
Catholic, she wa~ ';~hen ~:r.e dies, a J.~e:r.ber of The F..aster!l rt~r lo~g~.
So th~ priest did his stu.'ff first and then the Ep:\.sco?alian r;iniste:r
did hts la+.er.
mor~ money. Eoo7.e--bnoze- -and more 'bo0ze. Wolt'en--wom~m--and more W(;men.
FilthystN-f.tM and U'Ore i'ilthy stories . 'fnese are the things which
Page 156
s car my soul nc I tr~r, iR my hu.'tlble s~r1ple manner to _point the' eyes cf
Not a stngl t5: M:l..nist'1r in r:~osco w went nnaY. !1:D'loJY·,'. of'
brol<fln- .he a:rtRd . f'i:X . Nye . 'Not on(' ucrnber ~t, thA C ~ l~ . R ~.:.ttendc'J. '1er fu..l'leral '
suici de to0 • And t his :1.<: C'11:risti.'1n i t~r.
·tel l y ou. what hap_pr.me<'l. t o D.r.' C '"l. T ~nn~y.to v;hmn I hav~ before re:farrad ••
I~t me Aga:tn r'B.ke it W'!ry p·r_ain that tn ·.·r.rttine as I do on this sub j ect '
I do so becnuse of a feeli ne of r ighteo".ls tndienatiOl' whioh , in spite
of myself,sweeps over me when I b~~~ s.,e men, r:1intster0 of th~ Gos:-~' 1 '
supposed to be ex-.p~rts Oi1 God, i1ctine c:-.s th:;y l"!av~ a.ctcd . Yet they Are
not to ble.me . Th~'Y just simply do not: krlNir God , Fnd tht=>y wi1J act a~ they
have been actine; for thE"; p:'1.st two t1 l0n.C'l~;~d years until they do know God '' rdr;..lcnlons n thj_l'1f'r> w'l1 i.ch hBpp~ne-c~., in the n~~t chr'l.:ptcr.

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'. ·-
CHAPTER FOUR
In which
~e read an amazing story.
The moat amazing saga in American rel igious history has been ~ritten in
t he little City of oscow, Idaho over t he past twenty years. It sounds more like
fiction than truth. As before stuted,the story has been written up b,y many leading
newspapers and magazines in many countries.' ost of the writers however,drew on
their fertime imaginations,and wrote their e ensational stories out of thin air.
Only one of these writers visited oscow to obtain first-hand information.
He was Dr.Marcus Bach ot Iowa State University. He did not discover all there is
to be known about this amazing 1ovement,but what he did discover was true. Pad these
other writers but known it,truth~in this instance,is very much stranger tr~n fie-tion.
Had t .ey visited thi s 1 ttl e City and obtaine ~irst-hand information,instead
of drawing so freely upon their imaginations,they really could ~ve got t,e n a story
which would have made them f amous.
ost of the l eading • eri odicals knew that somet i ng unusual was hap-paning
in t he realn religious, here in . osco\ . ltlw.t it was,they did not know,nor did
they take the trouble to make an intelligent investigation. y;·hile in conference
with llr.tvilliam Chener;y in his office at 250 Park Avenue a few years ago,I SU6gested
to this gentleman,who was then Editor £ Coll~er 1 s Weekly,that he withold a s tory
he was about to publish on The Psychi&na Religion. ~~1 I asked was the privilege,
before the story was publi shed,of seeing the ~uscript. I had an idea from the
n- of man ho had written the story, that it would probably ' be & slap-dash sen-
~iolal yaern in which the founder of the ovement would be pictured as a highway
robber,it not worse. I wa~ correc~ . Collier's Weekly published an illustrated
Page 117
in which t he writer was pictured ns a ''sh.e pherd" and the inference was quite plain
that this .'ovament might be a rnoney-~akina scheme from the proceeds of which the
writer hns nnde a fortune. This,of course,is utterly false. The writer kn s how
to make a fortune if he chooses to,and so1:1e day he may. But if and when he does,
it will not be by playing upon the religious e1no~ions of the American people. Religion
is too sacred a t 1ing for that.
Tlell to get back t o ' ..r.C.henery. \le sa.t there in his office,and I went
round and round with the gentleman,trying to impress upon him the necessity of allow-ing
me to see what was to be published,it he desired to be at all fair,and publish
factual information. But I got just exact y nowhere.'"It would n t be good journalism to allow you to see what will be
published before it is ' ublished11 said r.Chenery to me. To which I replied:-"~·
Chenery,it is the very highest type of journalism to make sure of t he truth of
what you publish." I l eft his of! i ce,and when the article appeared, sa just
how very wrong ~.Chenery had been in ~llowing such an article to be published
without at least giving me an op~ortunity to erase the many errors which appeared
in the article.
However,when any man advocates something new in religion,that
man,if he really has something new,must be prepared to lthatand attacks which
will come from every quarter,buth expected and unexpected. Fortunately the writer
happens to be prett:y well grounded in his philos pey and in his len wled8e of the
Power of God. All attacks have been ~ as ~effective as water on the back of a
proverbial duck. All future att-acks will be equally as ineffective.Truth is it•s own
protector. It needs no other protector. It is for this simple reason that it is
impossible to stop the truths of God,as I am releasing those truths,from winning
thelr wa:y round the world in spite of any and all opposition.
Page 118 •
Perhaps the most vicious of all attacks on t his religion came from
an organization calli.ng itself the "better'' business 11bureau". I discovered,
on investigation,that this organization,while calling itself a rtbureau11
1he.s no
connection whatsoever with our government. It has no judicial powers whatsoever
although it gives the ~~pression that it does possess such powers.
The movement subsists by selling "me~berships 11 to certai."l business
men,and soliciti~ "donations" from others. Usually it sells a "membership" to a
few prominent local business men,e.nd offers them a eeat on it' s 11di'•·ectorate 11 • Then
the names of these prominent businessmen are prominently displayed on the stationer
of the "bureau" and this,of course ,gives t he impression that these pro •. inent bus­inessmen
are actively engaged as officers,receiving a sal~ for their services.
The United States Supre~e Court however,i .• a decision handed down
n Nove:nber of 1J45,pointed out tl"e fact t hat the "directors" are merely nominal,
being paid no salary. The Court pointed out further that there was a distinctly
"commercial" atmosphere permeating the entire structure. The "bureau" had attempted
to secure exemption from social eecurity taxes on the grounds t lat it ia an "edu­cational
and scie title institution". But the United States SUpreme Court said, in
part,1n the unanimous decision it handed down-"fle join the lower courts in de!V'inlf
that contention.' So the "bureau" will have to 1: ay it 1 s social security taxes
just o.e other couunercial organizations pay them.'
It is quite possible that a certain religious organization was behind
the "bureau" attacks upon this reli~ion. Be that as it me.y,hol'lever,one day I received
e.n insulting letter from the l)etroit "better') business "bureau". It was aigned
by o •. e II. I. .cEl.downe7. The letter de!nanded an im::lediate financia.l ;:statement 1e.nd
many otrer particulars which certt.inly "l&re none of the business of any 11better11 ''
business 11bureau". 0£ course, such a request uet witl: instant refusal.
~ aEZe 119 ____ ~-
The writer can speak and write just as }lainly as any 11bureau11
manager,and this man ~'cEldolmey received a lett er 1n keeping \'ith the one he had
so brazenly addressed to me. l'ihat a "better"{?' business 11bUBeau11 manager in
Detroit :ich. was doing trying to interfere with a religion in Idaho,! could not
fathom. However, there was the letter,and I i.lr.agine by now the entire 11bureau11 org&n­ization
would bive it's right arm had ~# that letter not been written. An attack
on any man•s religion happens to constitute subversive,un-ft~erican activities in
these Uni ted States--at least I believe it does--and hen any or ganization,not ves­ted
with Judicial powers,attem}ts t o suppress and destr~y the religious faith of
over one million people,that most certainly constitutes subversive,un-J~erican
activity.
The Psychiana .ovement operates under a very powerful : daho religious
charter. It ls known as a Cor~oration Sole,~nd it's po~era are very wide. OUr pro­perty
i s all tax-exempt and -we do n.:>t pay either slilcial security or property taxes
in the State of Idaho. The writer is pa '. d a salary for his services,a.Di that salary
is so small that he oan,if he so desires,triple it any time he cares to.
Yet here was this "better business" organization,asking for "financial"
statements from the eeventh largest rel~ioua organization ~n J~er ica. I presume it
will be a1king the Rooan Catholic Ch roh,or t he Presbyterian Church tor financial
stat~ents one of these days. I should like to have a copy "of the reply it reaeives
£rom Ro;:e it it ever does e.sk it for e. statement of finances.
Anyway,! flat~ refused to submit any statellient of any sort to this
organization,which,b,y t he way, I had never hea o{ before. J~d tben the true, nature
of .cEldowney began to sh w 1 tself. He drew u "bulletins" which were sent to every
magazine and newspaper which car ried our copy (over 800 of t hem) and he asked that
no further advert•sing of The Psychiana Religion be carried until this religion' Page 120
Psyohiana had submitted a fi..'lallc~al statement to t he "better'') business "bureau'
Let it be reitember ed here that thi s "bureau" organization is not
connected in anT way,either direct1J or indirectly wi th the U.S.Gover0$ent. It has
no Juducial powers whatsoever. It ~s a private corporation whose headquarters are
in New York City,and it has branches throughout ~he United States. (I should like to
seea financial statement of the 11bureau,. Yet here it was,a perfect example of the
attempted suppression of reli gi on if I have ever seen one, asking nE.wspapers and
magazines thro ghout the nation not t o acce_t the religious advertising of one of
.America's major systems of rel igion. It is unbel..evable,yet t hat is what happened •' 'ihen 1 t ' s attempts t o stop our ad7ertising f ailed, the "bureau" began
to file ohe.rgeB ~ainst thi~ relJ.6ion with the ·Post )f'fice De .rtment. It bad no
s ucoess there either. Then the Federal Trade Commission,and then the ~ecurities'
Exchange Commiasion,and I dont know how m&ny more government agencies were the
recipients of "complaints" against us,merely because we were offering something new
in religion.
I mention this at t ack because if my religion can be so ruthlessly
attacked tod~,yours could be tomorrow • • oreovel ,it makes one a~spicious ot the real
motiYea of 8n7 private Cvrporation which so brazenly and penly attacks anyone's ·
~ligion,no matter how difterent his religion ~ be.
In t he United States, e have ve.ry comretent offici als, both
State end Federal,snd law viol ators e s eedi ly COU!Jht up with. The }Jl"ecedent of
allowing any private ovrp Iation,no ~tter w~~t it calls i t self1to interfere with,
and try to sul press UJ.Y man's religion is a f:tf.e~tv precedent T.hioh,if not el iminated
s peedi~,could result in the complete l oss of religious free om here in America.
We suffered over one milli on casualties in the cruel es just ended. Those boys
suffered and died to protect,w~ a1e told,fre~p~ £ r ligion,among other freedoms.
P~e 121~---'
Yet here in this same freedom-loving America,there is an organization
which,i f a religion will not f ile a financial statement with it,will try to sup­press
and destroy that rel lg~on. The precedent is too dangerous to be allowed to
comtinue. ,There is too much danger in allowing aey private corporation t.J have any­thing
whatsoever to say or do about aey man's religion. The Ku Kll.lX Klan ie an
example of that. The German-Amer lean Bund is another example.
~
The man does not live who cen offer one word of cri ticism against
Fat her Flan~"-n of Boy-stown Nebrask"l.. Yet t his aa.me "bureaurr ru.th"e11sly attacked
Fathet- Fle.na.ge.o,wh.:>se l!OOd deeds are know around t.he \'orld. Firat Father Flanagan,
then The Psychiana Religion---will your religion be next?
I had to smile at iiJ/J!(/;#(/.IJ an English weekly ot very large circulation which,
some years ago,ran two full pages of illustrated edit orial matter on the founder of
The Psychiana Religion. He had written me for a few facts upon which to base the
article,and I had sent him as many pertinent facts as I thought he would need.
When the article was ublished however,it ap~eared w~th a huge full-eight
column illustrated banner which depicted the writer running from a bank with a
gun in one hand and about half a mill ~on dollars in the other hand. The caption
read :-11FOR.iER BANK RJBBER ST.A.RTS NEW F..ELIGION'
I may have robbed a bank in t he dim misty recesses of ~ past,but if I
did it must have eeen while I was man~esting as someone else--which Theosophists
believe possible. Certainly there was nothing in the information I bad sent. to Lon­don
which even hinted that I am a reformed bank-robber. So much f or the journal­istic
mmnds of some publishers.
Pbge 122
The
i/:tdl articles which hav~ appeared in TD!E were not too be.d, but they
too with t he arti cles which have appeared in NEWSWEEK, PIC,THE PATHFINDER,JltERI CAN
MERCUDY,MAGAZINE DIGEST 8nd other periodi cals f Rr too ntunero JS to mention,all held
the i nnuendo t hat t he writer is a very clover ! romoter ,a maate~ of upper -case,and
an advertising genius wit hout a peer. One magazine,on the~ "yellow journal" order
stated t hat the founder of The fsychis.ne. Rel ig ton ls 11Tbe f'or ld ' s Greatest 1dvertisi ng
Genius and Racket eer.' dl, considerin~ the t ype of magazine wl: ich carried t he
story headed as e.bove,I consider thnt quite a compliment.
Of c~urse ,when it became evident that The Psychiana Religion was
here to stay,as millions upon millions were receivinJ our literature and hundreds of
t housands were Joining our organization,religious periodicals unleashed a barrage
of criticism which was interesting, to say the least. The writer bas been accused
of belng everything f rcm "Anti-Ct.rist11 to "An incarnation of Jesus". Neither ,of"
'
co~ee is true. The writer is merely a man who has an infinite faith the Almighty
God and who believes t hat the Power f /Jmighty God can,it the world will allow 11m
to,bring sanity and peace into a world which,unless it changes very rapidly,will
destroy civilization in the next t hree years r less. If t he human race does not
completely destroy itself,unless the Power of God comes t o the rescue,it will maim
i t self beyond al l recognition. On the blast ed ruinp .f this civili zation which
could have known t he Power of God had it oh se t o,The Allaighty wil l build a much
grander civi l i zat lon which will be based u1 'On ctual knowledge of' t he Power of
the Spirit of God.
The Author bel ~ves he kniJWS what l e is tnlkitli about. He knows
whereof he speaks. He has,as hi s advertisements' sta e, 11TALKED WITH G D" and when
man talks with God and God t alks with I:11ln,if man listen8,he uauall.T can find the
wq out of every desperate situation. The tro ble with man today is the he wUl not
list en to what The Almighty has to reveal. If a 1 rophet of God a pears on the
~e 123 _____ ~~~~--------------~
horizon and attempts to inetlll new life into dead theological bonos,immedtate~
a cr7 is aroused against th~t man. 'Usual ly by the churches who do not desire to be
dist urbe in their theological lethe.rg7. They like it. They want to keep it. They
are too lazy to shake it o!f.
All ri~ht then--let them have it. I dont want it. Tl'.e day is
not far off when the c urbhes will beg for the Power of G~d to come to them. 7hat
day may be t oo late.
Among the m st vicious of all religious magazines which attacked The
Psychiana Religion was the f111tHT..'!Iffl.!f!H##Iit'liJ#fitti.oi.&~' otti#J./'(Jf#fitf.l#fit#'l'ff.;J.I'M/.4'¢1t
1/il##lfiUii.f#lottfiil.r.~-.tf.pt/.fl '.'r:Ile"f/1 ld#fln$.t ,;i.t ita!i !#!#rr#i~' II SUnday School Times. This
magazine is,I believe,the l argest c~culating and most outstanding of all P.Dotestant
interdenominational magazine. After tearing my t eachings limb from limb,an article
under the date-line of December 25th. 1937 ,says thie,in part:-
'fhus 1 t is evident that r sychlana is a complete rejection
of God,Chriet,and the 31ble.~t it ls not a new rejection,
not a new di scovery, or revelation of any sort.To be sure,
it makes characteristic~ll7 ~odest claims to be new .••••••
yet it CJntains nothing whatsoever th~t i s new but is mere~
another of the old,old echoes o£ the ancient lie with whicl
Satan deceived Eve in the Garden of Eden •.••.•• the same
false pbllosophy has been ·popul~ throush the &.ges and :finds
express ion tn Jr".n.Y false clll te sucl1 as Chri5ticn ·Science,
New Thought,Unity,e.nd the like. All these, ith Psychiana,
deny the realit7 and the 1eath-wngea of s.tn, the unique deity
of Jesua,all mens need of a Savior,the substitutionar.y
blood a t '>nement made by Christ in Pis death on the eros a,
His bodilJ resurrection,and His coming again to judge and
reign over the world •••••••••• '
The editor ol the Times continues in this strain. I r~Ave given J1fT reader
enough for him or her t o gresp the ineinuetiona in the srticle. I cannot help but
n te in the original art-icle, t he editor forgot to ca}-italize the words v1hen r e.ter­ring
to Jesua. The capitals in the above quote parts of the art cle were pl.e.e~
there by Il'.e.
Page 1 23
It is a pity that the magazines and the leaders of our major
religions are so dogmatic that they infer that anyone ho disagrees with them is
automatically wrong. Although totally 'U.JUlble to prove their honestly held "beliefs'
they forget that t hey are only 11beliefs11 • They rnay be true or false beliefs. The
editor of t he Sunday School Times,for lnst&nce, cennot prove in any court of law,
that any of his theses concernin,~ God,Chrlst,or the Bible are true. J.ll they do
is prove that they "believe" t hem to be true,and 1ometimes I wonder if they can
do that.
So long as this "closed-door", bigoted atti tl.\de is persisted in
I see no possible chAnce of hatever ne revelations which may come direct from·God
•
being accepted by the Christian church,the very organization which should welcome
such men as me with open arms. S?me man like me might possib~ have a revelation
come•
which lti:IJ* direct from The Almighty-you never can t ell. The editor ot the S.S.Times
himself does not have all the answers .a lthough he may think he has •
If that is the case,and it very easily could be,then do you not see
how the C 1ristian church itself mi ght very easily be the organization which, because
o£ it's unwillingness to believe tlat God still has a few revelations left for this
Christianity will never save it so long as it adopts the vaiD.,toollsh
attitude that it possesses all the truths of God,end denies the possibility ot The
Almighty to inspire ~ man today with the necessary illumination the world needs
to save it from it•s impending doom. In spite of anything the traditions of the
religion advocated by the s.s. Tines 11believes", this world is heading straight for
a disaater which lllA7 be eo stupendous that it will almost t otally destroy civiliza­tion,
and there is nothing the e itor of the S.S.Tim s or the Christian religion
can advocate which can ard otr that calruuity. So why brand eveyone who teaches
another doctrine,a. faker,e. fraud,or an iupostor?
___________ Page 124 ________ ~---------------------
of the S.S.Time3 to r~~em~er the advice given by G~-~liel--" If this work be of
God ,ye cannot atop 1 t-if 1. t be of ntt'.n, it w '.11 coma to na\l.iht. 11
•
The editor of the Times makes the blanket statement that Psy-chia.na
is 9 complete reJection of God,Christ,and the Bible. t dont believe this good gen-tlema.
n meant that when he wrvte it. The entire Psychiana .ovement is t .unded upon
the Power of The Spirit of God. In twenty years l t has ta~ht notbi~~ but the rower
of the Creator-. ft is the Powel" of God in the l.it'e of the f ounder of the
.ovement which enables h to demonstrate the actual and liter~~ Power which can
come only from the Father. How then can the editor of the S.S.Times say that I
reJect complete~ God~ Father?
•
The reader will know before he finishes this book,if indeed he '
does not know it already, t hst,far from rejecting Christ,! love that '!.t!l!! as few
have ever l oTed Him. { ! even capl ' alize the pr~positions when l':riting about Him,and
the S.S .Til'!les does not). But I love Him ae a lt8n,oot as a God. I have no time to
love Jesus es a God because all of my time is fully occupied w1th,iaieed rq whole
life is hidden in God-the Spirit of God,end that precludes my #N.ff#J/tt/1 worshii-ping
Jesus as ·God.
As a God,Jesus would be superfluous to me.· I have one God,and
that God ie autf ic1ent ~ That God exiete long before time was. Long bet re Jesua was.
Long before Bibles · '. ere kn:nm. Lot15 t~tore the hwr.an race .ever cau to t.h• earth.
Like Jeeus,I have found that Jt is the Spirit of God,tbat dwel­beth
within me,that doeth the works. Jesus was the great~st spiritual Prophet this
world will ever know. But the entire mission of Jesus was not to blow His pwn horn,
but to reveal to humanity--Hi~Fathe~ 1od.The total and complete failure of t he
Page 125 _____________ ~--------~---------
-
Chri sti s.n church to make any iru4.r eseion on thia worl d,or stop f or one i nstunt the
head1.ong plunee to utter destruction, which lies just e.hea t , co.n be attributed to
it 1s w .shippinB J esus cS a God• mis~i~ complete~ and entirelr t ho ~cssage Jesus
came t"=> thi s eBl'th to reveal. 'lhat rcess~G is t he pre~ent existence of the Spirit
of God on the e~rth, am in each 0'1.e of w:s.
I point the editor of the S.S.Times to 1 Cor.5;16 There he will find
this statement if he will but look:- "Know ye not tr..at ye are the temple of God,
and t hat the Spirit ot: God dwelleth 1n 7)U?' Cau anythi~ be plainer ths.n that?
Did Jesus come to t hi s earth t o preach an, other message than that? I s there any
other message which can eave t his world t oday-exce t that?
r ~~ n,t interested in disc~s~ ing ni th t he edi tor of the S.S.Times his
reference t o Eve i n t he Garden of Eden,nor u:n I i nt erofitcd in h13 Satanic roa jesty
and his converaation with a tE.U:ing e ns..l(c. Fur too ser l o.!f; probleu.s confront t his
worl d for me to ·be interested in such t waddl e as that. If the editor of the Times
chooses t v believe t hc.t, l et h1m have it. I dont \'"E.:lt i t '
I ahould like to tell t he editor of the S.S. imes,just 1n case he does
not know,Just where t hat et~ry originated. It did~ originate in the C ri~t1an
Bible,with all due resr ect t o t he rever ence with which t he g entle~an holds the
Chtistian Bible. tillion~ of people knew the tal~ing anake stort thousands of
yeat's before Chrlstian-t1 was ever hearte carefu ly these names) Adi.mo and !!eva. Their virgin-born
crucfied God was {notG earefu ly agein) Jeseus Chriahna. There was a flood
which dest-royed r;.ll hw..an life from off tho face or the earth-excepting one_ men.
I
His na.'T!e was (note carefully again pl~ase) ?-Toe. Now NOia had thl:·ee oons,Sherma. Hama,
and Jiapheta. The Noah~of Cbriptianity had thr~e sons whose names were Shero,Iiam,
and J~tp..lJ.eth.
now this is the story ·f the Garden of Eden,in p!U"t,which the editor
of the S.S.Tiu:t?s uses in his attempt to tell his readers that Psychie.oo is a 11compl ete
rejection of God,Christ,and the Bible." I hcve ~~t one question to ask the gentleman
at this point--if the story of Adam and Eve, the s~_oent, the i'l:l.~.l or man etc._is a
Could it be poasibl~ that ent.ire story waa stolen fror~ t 11e Bind.:>o b~r the Christian?'! shell euga.ge in no f'..rgument over religion with the ed ttor of the
S.S.Times or anyone else,and it. is interesting to note that dv.rinz all the attacks
made on my by a.lro >st every maJor religious periodical in eJ~:istence~I have nev~ re­plied
totor ~swarad one of' them '
.Argl.l!!Wnto over rel~ion get just exactly n~wbere,and 1 have neither
the time nor the inclinatioa ·t.o indulge in them. I must be about II\Y Fath,er 's business,
any MY Fet~er's business happens to be the salvation of the hurr~n race,if the human
race will allow itself to be saved. It is quite evident ths.t the Christian chmch
does not know how the race can be sa~ed. I do know. Jt can be totally and completely
saved from ilP.manant disaster by the Power of God,and in n~ other way. Regardless of
what I think abou~ the talkil:l6 snake in;ti the Garx:lng to save thls civilization from itsel f
by and thro gh the Power of The Spirit ot God.
•
i/;J' metnods are my oJtn. y inspiration ia m7 elm.. Ily fellowship w '' th God
is my own. 1'he Power I receive from my God is my own. I ask uo one ho" I shall try
to reveW. the Power ot God to this world. I follow the Lieht as I see the :.ieht,and
it the day oomes when I hesitate to do that,I shall a~k God to take awey trcm me
the Yision He has given me,and give it to someo~e else mnr~ wcrthy then J '
tlone has ever heard me say that I,of myeel.f ,em aqythiP-t. r know nJYself
too well to r. ~e any such foolish statement. If it were not tor the r ower of the Spirit
of God -in roy .lite,do you think ! e) uld wri.te this book? Do y?u t !:d.nk for o::J.~ mooent
1 could utand up under the attacks of the "better'' ') busineaa 11hureau11• and endure
the constant 111nvestige.tions11 which t hat outfit hc:'. e ct used rue to ea:lure-~o you think
such articles as constantly apr-·ear in such perise up the Paychiam buildings ina ide of
fifteen minutee ,for I do not like agony and persecution any more thau Jeaus , iked
it ' .And I believe r know just how His beautiful hea.rt.-s+.rin:!e throbbeQ .r.nd pulsed
with inner pain and t ent when the realisioniste o:n. There was no r oo;.i in the 1nn1 \7hen He • as born,There ia no room
1n t he theol·:>gical inn for Him to.ced
against the Spi rit o£ '100.. The blrune may be on their heads.
The Presgyteria' Bonner was a bout the onlf religiouo eriodicnl
which gave me aQT crodit f or being in earneet,and for having a religious v!e1on which
I am tcying to bring to hu::\enlty. That .as because the author of the ar ticle, r:hich
J:ePtOl'
was published 1n the Eer..ner happened t9 be- the ffl#iJ"II o£ the First Presbyterian Church
1n .t.oscow--the nev.(U~ .Drury~ who B ~ id,in p(!.rt,in 1!332 in The B&nner,'''"Here is a
new reli~ion in it•s inf~ncT • • e cennot ignore it,whether we lik~ it or uot.tbia
manu ••• greatly hete'Or kine; fo:r you, o:r we shall have t o
unfrock him. Now you understand lli'.Robinson,I am not at the back of
>
this--I am all f or you- -but the church as a whole hates you,and it hates
your philosophy,so I cannot afford to be seen even talking m.th you--wont
you please go?'
Smilingly I agreed no·b to embarrass the eood l'lA.n of God
any further . But I cculdn ' t resist the tcmptatJ.on to say, tvhen bidding
him "Good~bye ' "Now I understand how le to us nll,through the tnvisibl~ Pcwer that is God. They will
Gf God vill do whc'1. the sA"Tet cf thRt Spirit becomes known,even if
only to an infini tnsirnal degree.
Par~ 150
I know pra ctically nothing about the Power of God . The best
that can be said ror m~ is ~hat I have a beiief which ~oes r~rhaps just
a lit~le bit beyond ordjn~~ beliefs in God . I hav~ l~arned,over the
years,thRt "ALL things are possiolo to .birn that heliP-vet;h '' . 1i'hrougn that
lit tle "t;iny shadow of a gliiJ111Jer o-t· actual 1'ai th in the flpj rit of" Goean.
You may be su.r~ of o!le thing--this c:i.vilization will
n0t coni:inue as it j_s. It w:l.ll e ither di3cover the Power of God,anny be able to hold. Tbe Po-..·~r bc-hind 1'1~ however,
is rreat, and the Power of Goli, which i.s rnad.e great throue.,h my wealmess '
is the Power I want you to know.
I have never be~n able to figure ov.t just why The AliPi~hty
spA.ke so very platn.ly to me, givine; me such a. responsib:!.lits·, when there
are so v~ry many m~n of :far g:reat:er cap~city thHl" I. There is an old
hyman that M~r be:Hutiful Christian mcth~r nsed to sine; to !'le mcmy ttmes
as I ~at Ol, h~r kne:!">. I s!-1<11 ne"~re:r forr:~t it.?Jor sh:->ll I eve-r forget
voic~
the s'•,reet ":tt:;t.,J ·-~r ::-ince ~tiJ:lt:d t:r. d~ath at the edrly .- g(:> of' tr:lrty-three '
v.thich uf:ed +o f':1nc r.:P- to slne:p t ' the melody of this •rc nder:f1.1l hyrrn '
"Oh to be nothing,nothine;
Onl~r to lie st Hi.r. :f'e10t •' A broken And f\illpt;y vcsse 1,
For +.hr Master ' s nse T"lade rner>t '
Th "~Y' cn"l~S to me nth is momt>r. t, an i~"lfj_nj_ t e 1 ove fc:r the ree.der . Yes--
it's an infinjte love for ::tll f:.'len. I have j st retuTned frcm Pull(T}an . Wash.
where I interview & broken-hbout ~18 . 000 P.nd 1.-t 's ope1:-a tion coots u.s ~bout
$500 a rr~onth, whi.ch w~-> B tan0 011t- o-r our own r-ocket.
1 n9.f fo.:rtmnat~: r~noueh to necure th~ ~~rvices o:f a very
h igh-class lady, a one Hrs ~ \Tulrt Nye to o:;:1e~.. t~ the Youth Center . Rhe was
l olled by all ' T}1e membe:rshtp of the center :!'A.pidly ros P. to eve!: 500
\
y oung pcopJe betwno' tbn Hf!/·~ of 1? and 19. TJ.1nt ccnte.Y :;r.'''!d.c ·it ' z •:~ark
on the O:i ty li f~ o:f Mosco''· Th~rr: has n<>ver been a rcc:;ec ta ~lc plact;
wher e our s cho o l -childr~n ·coul d 1'';0 after nchool ho1.:tr3 except filthy
p ool-hRlls where nxinkine; e.nc1 C1l.:-f'Si'1g is thn order of th," dr..l.y.
Th~rc; aTe a dozen churches in Mosc ow, eLoh of which could
have donated their bas~ments :for a Yc1.1th Center. But ~lo you think
the,y did'? You know the a.ns ' ter to that ;vi thout my· tell ing you. In cneir
sanotimcnj_ous, "holier- then-thou." ati;i tude , they shun.."led a.llY cl::ld all .:loti vi-t
tes whi ch mieht _possibly have been a. be!lefit t0 ou::- youth. And these
clos~d.
You s ee --t~rs . ~ye was found dead. in the Cont~r tl(JO l::eoks ago . Her
daughter Wny I.o1J has disap:peRr~c , le~v:5 ng o ~n~ ' c~;..~c note . The motbsr i s
Stv:'posed to ha~re co"l'li:i. tted snicide , •':hi en I nhRl J nE>ver believe . The
c oroner did not cc>ll for nn e.u.i.;ops~r , ~lth~ L.[,h "hY he Cli\1 not I shall never
l?a.ge 1 ~5
which if' hi"" 1lf!U~l. O!' f.'ing-pl.ncP, I hPlc jus-'; 1 eft r.r. y~--[;! brokCli-hearted
~lfoscow~-A.nd. now both of.' th.~m n:re sna-ppAd out of my life. For Godfl ~ake
t:'ll
I'll end it all.'
The brn -:~n-h~'a:trted :father an0 I at~ s. hit of hr~·!k:fast at
th~ Chiinrunan '' resto.u.r~nt in l llrnan, a:ftf~r t~hinb I ro"t1rrn~d to Ptoscow to
~T.rite some more o~ this book. ~~t I l~ft a broken-h~o.rted man i~ I ever
saw one . 'h~t ha~ :l.ll -t:hi~ to do ,,d.th the story of "The W~tr.dcrer''? Only
this. I saicl. I relt infinite pit:y ~.nd ncrro1·; for ev'):ry one of my :fellow-'''
~J'he lc~al undertak~r Ttl!fu.sed to bu:r,y Mr~. N;re until Y..r .1iya
had made over a lif~-inmtrtt.'1c9 policy to him • .And ·Lh~n he had •'}hrorged
tht:=~ nn0r, broJren-her .:rtec f3t.her c400 .for a cn:>ket v·hir~h :!'TO-)C.bl ~· d:1.d not
Catholic, she wa~ ';~hen ~:r.e dies, a J.~e:r.ber of The F..aster!l rt~r lo~g~.
So th~ priest did his stu.'ff first and then the Ep:\.sco?alian r;iniste:r
did hts la+.er.
mor~ money. Eoo7.e--bnoze- -and more 'bo0ze. Wolt'en--wom~m--and more W(;men.
FilthystN-f.tM and U'Ore i'ilthy stories . 'fnese are the things which
Page 156
s car my soul nc I tr~r, iR my hu.'tlble s~r1ple manner to _point the' eyes cf
Not a stngl t5: M:l..nist'1r in r:~osco w went nnaY. !1:D'loJY·,'. of'
broly wi1J act a~ they
have been actine; for thE"; p:'1.st two t1 l0n.C'l~;~d years until they do know God '' rdr;..lcnlons n thj_l'1f'r> w'l1 i.ch hBpp~ne-c~., in the n~~t chr'l.:ptcr.
'
The Spirit and the PoV'!er of God were very close to me
in those baby days of Psychiana. Fll'er.t spare moment I had was spent a l one
with God . I op~ned u_p the innennost secrets of oy heart . I told Him I
knew there were TOlA.gh$ times ahead . 1-Tust hm7 rough I did not know.
But God ~d I became so very e;lose that there never t•as any question
in my mind about t~e recvcnent I should shortly sti.trt , s·weeping ro'.md t he
worl d . That s eemed to be a f oregone c oncl usion '
I had a. message :f::OIJ.1 God . It was t he message which
would save t his tA:orl d from destruction i f it ever \\as saved_. 1bat message­would
r ock the Chrit~tian church t o it ' s very foundati ons. It would bri ng
do1.'vn. on my head the concentrated hatred of all systerns of religi on.
I knew these '::hi ngs :full vrell. Yet the thought of' ever hesi tati ng or
s t opptne nt-1ver once entered my mind. As :f'ar as I was concerned,
I \'ras el.reeay on my way.Tie.B.ework I had b0en called to do was not my
work . It was not in m3r own :interests . I had :personclly found God, and I
had found a rapport 'Nlth God ··vhich \~as abs olute and complete . I could hav e
done anything I war..ted to f oT myself, thro-,lgh the PoTer I had so recsntl y
f ound.
But t;od had oth~r plans . I am glad lie did have . l:..s I loo
back this evening , I would not have one tl1ing different . I would not
change a singl e e=perience . I should do the va1 y sa·ne things over again.
If I hav e been lax in anything in bringing this Movement into existence,
it has b~en in not worki ng hard en ough. Perhaps I ha~e taken things
a bit too easy. ~hen I ponder on the cundi·tions e~ isting in the
wor ld now, s ome twenty years later, t he urge t o doubl e ny efforts keeps
me ha:rnessed t o the task set before me. I never know from one clay
to the next , just what my p l nns vdll be . I do not vnow nhat a day
vvill bri..ng forth . I do not care . About the onl y tr.ing I know is that
i f t his worl d. does not fj_nd the l'ower of God very soon, it will perish •
.Pa ge 142
I had not be.en iJ:. Moscow sixty days until I v-;as renting the
dining-room at the iTotel of zon AV~:ni ne;' payi ~e f~f/Jf/1/1## five dollars a
night,and giving lectu:res on "the Power of God. I hed never made a public
lecture i n my life before,yet it was my dut y; whenever and wherever an
opportunity occured,to tell my f'ell ow- A!!ler!.cans what the ?owor of God
could do for them.'"~~f.oscow is,as I have s-t-ated, a uniYersity torm. That
means that most of the br~ins in the State of Id~o arG concentrated
here in ~~oscow . You can imag:tne th<3t it took quite ~- bit of co·vrag:J
to giVE' publi~ ad;lrosk a question? rr she
inquired. "Certainly ·'1~tdam--'t'~l:n=rt is you:!:' que:::tion?'. W:zll could the
Power of God, o:f ~hich you hc>Vt'J been speaking, gror'l a ne·N leg on .:m old
CO VI' who had had an accident and had it's leg cut o:ff?''
A sn~~cker went through the e.udicnce '.~nd a. se!lSe''
of ;'l!)frchen~ion , for rrl''ny of tlnse tb.o:re 1men that in $e~~~~~~ an
r eplied: - "I do not kno~: madam--suppose you go and haye your l eg cut
off and we '',.lill finn out ' I ~~va often ~P.e~ sor~ that I made that
r ejoinder. Nevertb~less,it was apr~)OS I beli eve tn that -meeting and
with that :particul:?.r pxo.f,ossor present '
!\1oscmv bad never kn.Ol'vn nnytf!ing like t his . It has not
seen another drug clerk either 'be:fore.or s ince who filled prescri:ptioa
and sold rat-and gopher poison all day and then lectured on t he Page 143
·.
Power of the Spirit of God at nie;ht. !lfacy woul1 s nc me on the street
the day after the me~ting,and one would point to hi~ he~d with the
:first :finger of his ri~ht h~nd,and wiggl~ the fiPgPr rount on doinc j".Ast tl~at . I too:~ the onJ.y way :·hich seemed op.Jn,and
I st:tll do.
I knew thnt f;2'500 wo·ul0 be- neccssm·y. Those tvumty Les~ons
had to b~ printed. nr.edcd. one thousand se:=r: of e'"rh. I aln o u~f!ded
ten -+:honsnnd se+:-:; of lntt:crs •·hinh t ·ere to be r:ent to ru.l who answcr~d
my advert:\.somcntn. I }:J'1e ' - o:f no l)~'ber i':ay to s·t8rt. the ~~~·t$ Mover11ent
other thnn by mo.tl I l< nP.''' I conlcl T('!flCh more people in that r.1annor sand
I lne't'! the more people I could reach in thn qn.L::l>:e5t possible time , would
sprelld the ·~ood news of the Po·wer of God. 'fRste:r. thrm en~r other m~?thod I
kner" of. But l';her ;·rRa the ~?. 500 to com-e fro'i'?
One evening, after dinr.er, I took 01.1t my overcoat,packed. trw
twenty lessons in Rn old bricf-c3sc I had,o.nd reahing for my hat Gaid
Page 146'
to Mrs.Robinson:- "I'm g ~ '. j.ng do~"n to·~m ':lnd ~~'ill be back in ~;, few
hous.n
She inaui:red w}'n:re I vvas eoint: ~nd whPt 1 Wt to do,as a
loving wife should.' tnl:"00n, asnistant cv.shier of the
bc!nk across ';he {!~~ street , ho! !3hou11 hava S O.;-' mo wy" Sctid George B~nson '
"Then cull hi1:1 up" I requested . In abou:t fifteen minutes
.El mer And•:!r.s on ceJGe dc''.T• . Inc i de:-rta l ly, El i!le:' Anderson has l>een business
manager :!or Psychiflna f o-r: -+·he '">ast s:txtc~en y~ ars. He h.'ld seven lmndred
a.nl fifty dollars •t:h~~l1 Le eave T1ct'orc vc~r lon~ . r;-..~. en than
ph.-ilo~"""hY of G,)d into ~ixty-~~ven different cc1rJ.t1 s,:for thnt 18 exactl y
~nh ~t happen'!d o
At thiC! po nt I bel"!e,re ! r'~'111. "tell the reader the
facts about the !1ame "P~YCP1ANA" and ho"! i-+; C'flme :tn+,o existence, mhe
story hac been very inacc:nrnt~ly -+;ol(l by 1'Ti t~rs "for newspapers nnd
rnagazine~,l\"hone imagination was greater than their de~ire for truth '
Here , you will r~ad th~ story as it actuelly happen~d '
I do not con5id.er tber~ io anythi1~g m"~raculouf' or super­natural
abou+, an.y or the c:rt::.R!lt:e h~ppem:tnes I shall r.elat~ to ~rou at
this point o Fer f:rom hP.i!Jg mj.ra~nl en~ or supern~tDr[\1, the~r are most
b€nuti f\tlJ.y naturAl. 'l:'h~se 11.:re the thint;s vni~h h~p:r en le to us nll,through the tnvisibl~ Pcwer that is God. They will
Gf God vill do whc'1. the sA"Tet cf thRt Spirit becomes known,even if
only to an infini tnsirnal degree.
Par~ 150
I know pra ctically nothing about the Power of God . The best
that can be said ror m~ is ~hat I have a beiief which ~oes r~rhaps just
a lit~le bit beyond ordjn~~ beliefs in God . I hav~ l~arned,over the
years,thRt "ALL things are possiolo to .birn that heliP-vet;h '' . 1i'hrougn that
lit tle "t;iny shadow of a gliiJ111Jer o-t· actual 1'ai th in the flpj rit of" Goean.
You may be su.r~ of o!le thing--this c:i.vilization will
n0t coni:inue as it j_s. It w:l.ll e ither di3cover the Power of God,anny be able to hold. Tbe Po-..·~r bc-hind 1'1~ however,
is rreat, and the Power of Goli, which i.s rnad.e great throue.,h my wealmess '
is the Power I want you to know.
I have never be~n able to figure ov.t just why The AliPi~hty
spA.ke so very platn.ly to me, givine; me such a. responsib:!.lits·, when there
are so v~ry many m~n of :far g:reat:er cap~city thHl" I. There is an old
hyman that M~r be:Hutiful Christian mcth~r nsed to sine; to !'le mcmy ttmes
as I ~at Ol, h~r kne:!">. I s!-1<11 ne"~re:r forr:~t it.?Jor sh:->ll I eve-r forget
voic~
the s'•,reet ":tt:;t.,J ·-~r ::-ince ~tiJ:lt:d t:r. d~ath at the edrly .- g(:> of' tr:lrty-three '
v.thich uf:ed +o f':1nc r.:P- to slne:p t ' the melody of this •rc nder:f1.1l hyrrn '
"Oh to be nothing,nothine;
Onl~r to lie st Hi.r. :f'e10t •' A broken And f\illpt;y vcsse 1,
For +.hr Master ' s nse T"lade rner>t '
Th "~Y' cn"l~S to me nth is momt>r. t, an i~"lfj_nj_ t e 1 ove fc:r the ree.der . Yes--
it's an infinjte love for ::tll f:.'len. I have j st retuTned frcm Pull(T}an . Wash.
where I interview & broken-hbout ~18 . 000 P.nd 1.-t 's ope1:-a tion coots u.s ~bout
$500 a rr~onth, whi.ch w~-> B tan0 011t- o-r our own r-ocket.
1 n9.f fo.:rtmnat~: r~noueh to necure th~ ~~rvices o:f a very
h igh-class lady, a one Hrs ~ \Tulrt Nye to o:;:1e~.. t~ the Youth Center . Rhe was
l olled by all ' T}1e membe:rshtp of the center :!'A.pidly ros P. to eve!: 500
\
y oung pcopJe betwno' tbn Hf!/·~ of 1? and 19. TJ.1nt ccnte.Y :;r.'''!d.c ·it ' z •:~ark
on the O:i ty li f~ o:f Mosco''· Th~rr: has n<>ver been a rcc:;ec ta ~lc plact;
wher e our s cho o l -childr~n ·coul d 1'';0 after nchool ho1.:tr3 except filthy
p ool-hRlls where nxinkine; e.nc1 C1l.:-f'Si'1g is thn order of th," dr..l.y.
Th~rc; aTe a dozen churches in Mosc ow, eLoh of which could
have donated their bas~ments :for a Yc1.1th Center. But ~lo you think
the,y did'? You know the a.ns ' ter to that ;vi thout my· tell ing you. In cneir
sanotimcnj_ous, "holier- then-thou." ati;i tude , they shun.."led a.llY cl::ld all .:loti vi-t
tes whi ch mieht _possibly have been a. be!lefit t0 ou::- youth. And these
clos~d.
You s ee --t~rs . ~ye was found dead. in the Cont~r tl(JO l::eoks ago . Her
daughter Wny I.o1J has disap:peRr~c , le~v:5 ng o ~n~ ' c~;..~c note . The motbsr i s
Stv:'posed to ha~re co"l'li:i. tted snicide , •':hi en I nhRl J nE>ver believe . The
c oroner did not cc>ll for nn e.u.i.;ops~r , ~lth~ L.[,h "hY he Cli\1 not I shall never
l?a.ge 1 ~5
which if' hi"" 1lf!U~l. O!' f.'ing-pl.ncP, I hPlc jus-'; 1 eft r.r. y~--[;! brokCli-hearted
~lfoscow~-A.nd. now both of.' th.~m n:re sna-ppAd out of my life. For Godfl ~ake
t:'ll
I'll end it all.'
The brn -:~n-h~'a:trted :father an0 I at~ s. hit of hr~·!k:fast at
th~ Chiinrunan '' resto.u.r~nt in l llrnan, a:ftf~r t~hinb I ro"t1rrn~d to Ptoscow to
~T.rite some more o~ this book. ~~t I l~ft a broken-h~o.rted man i~ I ever
saw one . 'h~t ha~ :l.ll -t:hi~ to do ,,d.th the story of "The W~tr.dcrer''? Only
this. I saicl. I relt infinite pit:y ~.nd ncrro1·; for ev'):ry one of my :fellow-'''
~J'he lc~al undertak~r Ttl!fu.sed to bu:r,y Mr~. N;re until Y..r .1iya
had made over a lif~-inmtrtt.'1c9 policy to him • .And ·Lh~n he had •'}hrorged
tht:=~ nn0r, broJren-her .:rtec f3t.her c400 .for a cn:>ket v·hir~h :!'TO-)C.bl ~· d:1.d not
Catholic, she wa~ ';~hen ~:r.e dies, a J.~e:r.ber of The F..aster!l rt~r lo~g~.
So th~ priest did his stu.'ff first and then the Ep:\.sco?alian r;iniste:r
did hts la+.er.
mor~ money. Eoo7.e--bnoze- -and more 'bo0ze. Wolt'en--wom~m--and more W(;men.
FilthystN-f.tM and U'Ore i'ilthy stories . 'fnese are the things which
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s car my soul nc I tr~r, iR my hu.'tlble s~r1ple manner to _point the' eyes cf
Not a stngl t5: M:l..nist'1r in r:~osco w went nnaY. !1:D'loJY·,'. of'
broly wi1J act a~ they
have been actine; for thE"; p:'1.st two t1 l0n.C'l~;~d years until they do know God '' rdr;..lcnlons n thj_l'1f'r> w'l1 i.ch hBpp~ne-c~., in the n~~t chr'l.:ptcr.